


Right Kind of Wrong

by galactic-pirates (stillsearching47)



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Ensemble Cast, F/M, Fix-It, Gen, Season/Series 06 Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-10
Updated: 2016-11-22
Packaged: 2018-08-30 05:35:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 22,747
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8520451
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stillsearching47/pseuds/galactic-pirates
Summary: Following on from the events of 6.07 - Heartless. Hope can be found in even the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light. Storybrooke has faced many challenges, with good always beating evil but they did that together, and now they are split apart. The story must play out but the ending might not be what anyone expects.





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was supposed to be a fix-it fic because if any episode needed one, it was Sunday’s episode, and anyway it just exploded. I promise it will get fixed _eventually_ , with eventually being the operative word. I have no idea how long this will be and that is slightly terrifying. It seems I've done an accidental WIP again heh. Anyway, enjoy!

Belle strode out of the shop, her feet automatically taking her back towards the Jolly Roger where she was still staying. After the incident with Jekyll and Hyde she had thought about moving, but in the end had opted to stay where she was. Moving somehow felt like she was letting evil win, by allowing it to change her plans. Besides, she didn’t have anywhere better to go anyway.

Once she turned away from Main Street onto the docks, she was out of sight. The docks were nearly always empty, and she slumped against the wall of the nearest warehouse and put her head in her hands. What was she doing? She meant every word, but she hadn’t meant those words to come out quite how they did. It felt like she was just a ball of frustration, anger and fear right now, with a big dose of apathy and hopelessness thrown on top.

She wanted to do the right thing, but sometimes it felt like she wasn’t sure what that was anymore. Belle laughed, a horrible broken sound even to her own ears. True love - what a joke that was. True love was supposed to bring happiness, and it had brought her nothing but heartbreak. It was a hard thing for her to accept, but it seemed that sometimes love wasn’t enough.

Once she had naively declared that _‘when she found something worth fighting for, she never gave up’_ but she was tired, and fighting had gained them nothing. It wasn’t just about her anymore, or even her and Rumple as a couple, it was about their child. It was their son that she would fight for now until her last breath. She wouldn’t let Rumple change their sons destiny to better suit himself.

“Nobody chooses my fate but me,” Belle whispered to herself.

Those were words to live by, she wouldn’t let anyone control her life and she wouldn’t let them control the life of her son. In the past, she would have confronted Rumple and left it at that, trusting that he would do the right thing in the end. These days she didn’t have that kind of faith. He couldn’t be trusted with the shears of destiny, so she would take them from him, which would mean she would need a little help.

*****

“Zelena,” Rumplestiltskin growled.

He let the fury course through him, directing all his rage at a woman who had already destroyed his life once before. It was better than thinking about the words Belle had just hurled at him, at the hateful all too true words about his cowardice. He always let down the people he loved the most. He was a coward, always had been, and eventually they all came to hate him for it.

 _‘You’re a coward, Rumplestiltskin and no matter how thick you make your skin, that doesn’t change,’_ were words Belle had thrown at him once before, right before she stormed out of the dark castle never to return. Then recently after the Jekyll and Hyde incident, Belle had told him that she had _‘always seen him for who he was’_ and it wasn’t a favorable picture.

His weakness was intolerable for her, but then Belle was so brave. Being brave was important to her, he had always known that. _‘Do the brave thing and bravery will follow,’_ she made it sound so easy, and perhaps for her it was. A agonized whine tore itself from his throat, he needed to stop the words from bouncing around his head, he needed a distraction, he needed - Zelena.

Rumplestiltskin snarled and gestured sharply with his hand, smoke engulfed him, transporting him into the kitchen of Zelena’s farmhouse. He tensed imperceptibly, his eyes falling on the table where Zelena had once forced him to eat meat-pie. That had been his favorite up until then, because his spinster aunts had made it for him as a boy, but he hadn’t been able to eat it since. Everything Zelena touched, she tainted and he was through letting her destroy what mattered to him.

The sound of a gurgling baby cut through the air. Rumplestiltskin’s eyes fell into the crib, where Robin’s daughter was awake and wriggling happily. She looked well cared for at least, but then he would be the last person to declare someone an incompetent parent just because they were a villain. He could hear the sound of heels against the wooden floor drawing closer, until there was a gasp as Zelena caught sight of him.

“What are you doing here?” Zelena demanded. “If you are looking for my sister, she’s not here.”

“Oh no dearie,” Rumplestiltskin hissed. “I’m here for you.”

Zelena’s eyes widened and magic started to pool in her hand, in an effort to defend herself, but it was too little, too late. Rumplestiltskin froze her in place, it wouldn’t hold her for long, already she was throwing her power against the threads of magic holding her prisoner. However, he had a lot more power than her, and the magic would hold long enough. His eyes flashed and he took a step forward, when the baby gurgled again.

He froze, his blood was boiling. He wanted Zelena to hurt, as he was hurting, he wanted to lash out and share his agony. He wanted his mind to go blissfully quiet, he wanted a distraction, he wanted the jealous green bitch who killed his son to finally die. The baby gurgled again and Rumplestiltskin’s clenched fist, relaxed back to his side. He couldn’t do it, not in front of the baby and maybe not ever.

Rumplestiltskin turned and strode the few paces back to the cot, looking down at the baby girl. Unconsciously his lips twitched into a soft smile. This child had already lost her father, and he really thought she deserved better than Zelena as a mother, but he couldn’t orphan her. He had never been the type of man to leave a child fatherless, and the same really applied to mothers. Zelena might deserve to die, but this child didn’t deserve to lose another parent.

“Don’t cross me again Zelena,” Rumplestiltskin growled. “Consider this a warning. You won’t get another one.”

With another sharp gesture he transported himself from the farmhouse, appearing somewhere deep in the woods. He couldn’t face going back to the shop, he couldn’t face going home, he couldn’t face the cabin, he definitely couldn’t face the town and all the people there. He wanted to be alone, but everywhere he usually retreated to was irrevocably associated with memories of Belle. He slumped down to the ground, his back against a tree and closed his eyes.

He couldn’t even cry, there were no tears left.

*****

The next day Belle knocked on the door of Zelena’s farmhouse, feeling an uncomfortable sense of déjà-vu. Down in the underworld she had made this same move, which bolstered her courage a little because that had worked out in the end. She had gone to Zelena for help before to save her son, and that was exactly why she was here again. She had considered going to Emma about the shears, after all Emma had a vested interest in ensuring that the shears were kept somewhere safe. However, it was precisely that which had given her pause.

Emma had the shears once before, and had believed she had disposed of them safely. That hadn’t worked out, as Rumple had got hold of them. Belle really didn’t want a repeat of that situation. Emma would believe she had more right to decide what happened to the shears than anyone else, and Belle couldn’t trust that she would keep them safely from Rumple. Which meant her only choice for help _was_ Zelena, because Zelena was on the edge of the group.

Zelena threw open the door. “Oh it’s you. What do _you_ want?” she sneered.

Belle sighed. “You’ve had a visit from my husband.”

“I try and be nice and get a visit from the avenging dark one,” Zelena complained. She folded her arms and glared at Belle. “So what has you darkening my door?”

“The shears,” Belle said simply. “I need to get them away from Rumple and I can’t do that alone.”

Zelena shifted, immediately intrigued. She looked appraisingly at Belle, and Belle hid her satisfaction. Zelena was going to draw this out but she was going to agree. Belle knew that wasn’t because Zelena wanted to help, but because she had her own agenda. When Zelena had told her about the Evil Queen and Rumple, it hadn’t been out of the kindness of her heart. Zelena had been lashing out, hoping to hurt her sister, or Rumple, or both.

“I suppose you better come in,” Zelena offered, stepping back to allow Belle past her.

Belle stepped into the farmhouse. Whatever reason Zelena had for helping her, it didn’t matter. Once she got her hands on the shears of destiny, she wouldn’t let them go. If Zelena hoped to take them for herself, then she was going to have a fight on her hands and wind up disappointed. Nothing was going to stop her from protecting her son.

*****

Rumplestiltskin was cold, and numb, and tired, and sad, and he really just wanted to destroy something. He hadn’t moved all night, just sitting in the forest, with his brain playing his greatest hits on repeat. It really made him want to lash out, in the vain hope it would stop, but he didn’t move because it wouldn’t help. Nothing was going to help. At the end of the day, no matter what he did, Bae would still be dead, Belle would still hate him and he had lost his unborn son before he was even born.

He was a coward, and he was self-aware enough to know he was self-destructing but it was like he didn’t have the control to stop. He didn’t want to be this man, he loathed himself but the more he hated himself, the more pointless everything seemed. Nothing was ever going to change, he was never going to be enough. He had failed at everything that truly mattered in life, and he just couldn’t take it anymore.

When the Evil Queen had first made her advances, he had brushed her off in disgust. Belle was his true love and Regina had always been more like a daughter to him. They had flirted back in the Enchanted Forest, mostly as part of power games, and he thought that Regina might have had a small crush. For a long time he was the only one who was honest with her, even if he wasn’t always nice, and he gave her the tools to change her life. However, the Evil Queen persisted and the first time they kissed, he had just let her kiss him.

He had been too tired to fight it anymore. She wasn’t going to stop, and it wasn’t as if she was actually Regina. The split Evil Queen was a creation of magic, stripped parts of Regina and not a whole person. That made it easier to rationalize it away, but he still wasn’t interested, not until he heard the bell of the shop. He remembered the pain he had felt seeing Belle and Will together, he didn’t want Belle to hurt, even now he didn’t want that, but he wanted some sign that deep down she did still care.

However, it hadn’t been Belle who had walked in on them, it had been Zelena. Though his message had still got through in the end, Belle had learned of the ‘affair’ but she hadn’t cared. They were true love, and true love was the most powerful of all magic, and he still couldn’t believe he had been blessed with it. However, it seemed that he could break even true love, and that he had only been blessed for a little while. They were over, he had lost Belle, as he always knew he would.

He had tried to save her the intervening heartbreak, he had told her that _‘he was still a monster’_ but she hadn’t listened and then look what had happened. Belle was right, he kept finding new ways to increase the suffering around him. He was a coward, and weak, and afraid, he was always so afraid and he couldn’t change that. If it was so simple as deciding to be brave, then he would do it, but it didn’t work like that, not for him.

All it took was a thought and a wave of his hand. With a puff of smoke, the shears of destiny transported from the shop to the palm of his hand. He would keep them on his person from now on, he couldn’t risk Belle or anyone else trying to take them. He might be a coward, and Belle might say it was an excuse, but everything he’d ever done had been for those he loved. He hadn’t been able to save Bae, and he couldn’t lose another child.

The utter terror was paralyzing, his fear of failure was crippling. He was absolutely terrified he was going to fail, but for his son, there was nothing he wouldn’t do. He felt sick, with the fear that he might fail, but that wasn’t going to stop him from trying. There was nothing he wouldn’t do for his son, and hopefully one day Belle would understand that. He doubted she would ever approve of his actions, they didn’t fit her moral code, but when it came to family there was no line he wouldn’t cross.

He would save his son, or he would die trying.

*****

Thoroughly discouraged Belle trudged into Snow and David’s apartment behind Zelena. Breaking into Rumple’s shop hadn’t been as difficult as she had expected. It had been locked up tight as he wasn’t there, but Zelena had blasted the door, and it had opened within minutes. However, despite searching every inch of the place physically, and with magic, the shears of destiny were nowhere to be found.

Belle was kicking herself, they weren’t there and it was her fault. She had confronted Rumple about his plans, and so he had taken steps to protect the shears. No doubt he would keep them on his person from now on, and they would be impossible to retrieve. She placed a protective hand over her stomach, at least she was only a couple of months pregnant.

Unless Rumple magically sped up her pregnancy, or something went wrong, their child wouldn’t be born for another seven months. The shears weren’t an immediate problem, it was just a concern at the back of her mind, this ever present dread that was like carrying around a heavy weight. She would feel better if she had the shears, because then she wouldn’t have to worry anymore.

She raised an eyebrow. “What happened here?” Belle gestured to the smashed mirror.

“The Evil Queen was watching,” Henry explained simply, glancing over to where Snow was laying watching David sleep on the bed.

“Well I’m here as requested,” Zelena smirked. “So I assume there’s some kind of plan?”

“Where are Emma and Regina?” Belle asked, looking around.

“They went to mom’s vault, they have a plan to trap the Evil Queen,” Henry told them. His eyes flickered to Belle and she suddenly knew why they were there.

“You need me, or Zelena, or both, to keep Rumple busy,” Belle murmured in understanding. She shrugged helplessly. “I don’t think that’s going to work, we just broke into the shop and he’s not there, and he didn’t come to stop us.”

“That’s really bad,” Snow piped up, frowning deepening in concern. “What do you think he’s doing?”

Belle hadn’t realized that Snow had been listening, it had appeared like all of Snow’s attention was fixed on her husband. Belle swallowed, seeing that David’s chest wasn’t rising or falling. He was under a sleeping curse and he looked dead. It was a disturbing picture and Belle felt a belated, and unwelcome, stab of empathy for Rumple. It must have been difficult to see her like that.

“He has the shears of destiny,” Belle admitted reluctantly. “That’s what we were trying to get back. I think he wants them to use on our son but ...”

“He could use them on Emma,” Snow hissed in horror. Automatically she glanced at David’s unmoving form, obviously wishing he was there to lend his strength and support. She chewed on her lip, before leaping off the bed. “We need to do something, we need to warn her.”

*****

Rumplestiltskin watched from the cliff overlooking the beach, as Regina and Emma confronted the Evil Queen. He knew what they had planned, because although Regina didn’t like to admit it, she and the Evil Queen were of the same mind - they were two parts of the same person. They wanted to trap the Evil Queen in the world behind the mirror, and instead the Evil Queen was going to trap them. He made no move to stop her because this had to happen.

The Evil Queen wasn’t the only one, who had paid a visit to the seer in the woods.

“Anything you can dream of, I’ve already dreamt it,” the Evil Queen hissed victoriously.

Purple smoke engulfed Emma and Regina, and was sucked like a tornado into the hand mirror that the Evil Queen was holding. The pirate stood by uselessly and Rumplestiltskin heard him demand that the Evil Queen explain what she had done with Emma and Regina. Instead the Evil Queen just smirked and transported herself away.

A moment later the pirate started sprinting back towards town, presumably to inform the others what had happened. Rumplestiltskin sighed, and his fingers curled around the shears in his pocket. It wouldn’t be long now. He was a big believer in fate and destiny, things happened for a reason. For a time he’d had the power of foresight, which he had taken from the seer who had set him on the road to losing Bae. The story had to play out but that didn’t mean, there wasn’t a loophole.

After all, what were dreams? But memories of another life.

*****

“She is really starting to annoy me,” Regina growled.

“Where are we?” Emma asked.

Regina looked round and winced. She knew exactly where they were, they were in the nightmare realm. When she had first cast a sleeping curse over Snow White, she hadn’t done her research. She knew it would trap her somewhere horrible and that was all she had wanted. It wasn’t until after Henry had fallen victim to her sleeping curse, that she had cared about the consequences for the victims.

She hadn’t been able to help Henry, but Rumple had given him a pendant and explained that the sleeping curse was more than it seemed. It transported the person’s mind to another realm, and then afterwards they were still drawn back there. Regina remembered David speaking of a hall of mirrors, before he’d felt the heat and managed so smash his way into the room of fire, somewhere he shouldn’t have been until the curse was broken.

It was the hall of mirrors that provided the punishment of the sleeping curse. They didn’t show images of people’s worst memories, forcing them to drown in their own regrets. No, the curse was much crueler than that, it forced people to live their worst nightmares. Regina glanced round and could see where they were - the ruins of her palace. This was her nightmare, and they were standing in the pavilion and she didn’t know what they were going to face.

“Regina!” Emma prompted, with rising fear in her voice.

Regina looked up and her eyes widened, seeing a large serpent dragon rise up in front of them. That was certainly different, certainly something she wouldn’t have expected. She had no particular fear of dragons, because aside from the odd occasion when she had annoyed Maleficent, there had never been any need to fear them. Magic pooled in her palm, as she formed a fireball, something simple to distract it.

They were in the nightmare realm, and nothing here was real, and yet everything here was real. Basically, it was as real as they made it, and their fear only made everything stronger. The dragon dodged the fireball as Regina tried to feel the threads of magic, that made the illusion. Her jaw dropped, suddenly realizing the truth.

“That’s no illusion,” Regina said in horror. “I think that’s the dragon from New York.”

“How did he get here?” Emma asked, as they both fell back against the pillars of the pavilion, which would provide scant protection from the dragons flame.

“Same way we did I’d imagine, the Evil Queen trapped him here. Except unlike us, I suspect she has his heart.” Regina swallowed, her dread clear on her face. This was just like the situation with the Count of Monte Cristo. “He’ll kill us under her command, and he won’t stop unless we stop him.”

Emma’s eyes slipped, and Regina followed her gaze to see Emma’s hand was shaking uncontrollably again. They might have stood a chance if they combined their magic, but she didn’t know if she could protect them both, and Emma’s magic wasn’t available right now. However, that didn’t mean she wouldn’t try. Regina moved forward, stepping in front of Emma.

She glared at the dragon. “Give it your best shot.”

The dragon snorted smoke, and opened it’s mouth to breathe flame. Regina prepared herself, bringing magic to hand to form a protective barrier, when smoke engulfed her. She blinked, suddenly finding herself somewhere else. She twisted round and looked at Emma in shock, she hadn’t thought Emma capable of doing that, but Emma’s confused shrug told her that it wasn’t her.

Regina glanced round the forest clearing uneasily, if it hadn’t been Emma, then who had saved them? Her eyes caught movement, a shadow by the trees that stepped out from the gloom. It was a young man, dressed in typical Enchanted Forest clothing, a brown shawl around his shoulders. He smiled at them warmly, but there was something in his eyes Regina didn’t trust.

“My name is Morpheus, and welcome to the nightmare realm.”


	2. Chapter 2

After a few minutes Regina wandered away from the clearing. She stayed within earshot of a scream, should Emma need her, but she wanted to check out the area. Morpheus had talked a lot, but said almost nothing, which was only increasing her distrust of him. Like the dragon, or like them, he wasn’t an illusion.

That meant somebody had banished him here, and even though he shared the name of the ‘god of dreams’ Regina was fairly certain he wasn’t _that_ Morpheus, no matter what he claimed. The snap of a twig was like a jolt of adrenaline to the heart. Regina instantly formed a fireball and whirled round, bringing her arm back to throw it at whatever was about to attack her. The flames died in her hand.

“Robin?” Regina gasped in disbelief.

Robin gave her a crooked smile, and took a step closer. Regina drank in the sight of him, he was dressed in the same Enchanted Forest clothing she remembered from when they first met. A stained white shirt, green jerkin, brown leather belt, and an arrow quiver slung over his back. The bow itself was in his hand, his grip tightened on it as he glanced nervously behind her.

“Regina, you can’t trust Morpheus,” Robin said urgently.

“I know, I don’t,” Regina muttered absently.

She took another step towards him, so that he was almost within touching distance. She reached out her hand and bit her lip, her eyes filling with tears. This wasn’t Robin because Robin was dead, his soul had been obliterated. This was why this was her nightmare, it was giving her a taste of what she’d lost, only to rip it away again. He was nothing more than an illusion, conjured up to torment her. She should walk away, and not give the illusion power, but she missed him so much.

“He wants a way out of this nightmare realm,” Robin continued. “Everybody trapped here does, but most of us have accepted our fate.”

Regina’s hand curled round Robin’s arm and she sniffed. He felt so solid, so real and warm under her hand. She moved her hand up, trailing it along his arm until it reached his chest. She placed her hand flat against his chest, and she didn’t need magic to feel the solid reassuring thump of his heart. With a stifled sob she turned round, and crossed her arms protectively. It hurt, it hurt so much and it wasn’t even real.

“Regina, my love,” Robin said gently. He placed a hand on her shoulder and Regina tensed. Robin sighed. “What do you know of the nightmare realm?”

“It’s the world behind the mirror,” Regina muttered hollowly. She twisted to face Robin, taking a step back to put some distance between them. She stared at the forest ground, unable to look at his face, to see the love in his eyes. It was a lie, it was all a lie. “The realm that people’s minds are transported to when they are ... under a sleeping curse.”

Robin nodded. “Yes but it’s also ...”

“Have you seen David?” Regina asked suddenly.

Unless Snow and David had switched again, it was David who was currently under the sleeping curse. Therefore he should be somewhere in this realm. True loves kiss couldn’t wake him, it would only shift the curse back to Snow. Unless of course, somebody else could give him true loves kiss which might break the spell completely. Emma had tried, and it hadn’t worked. True love was supposed to be rare, and familial true love even rarer.

Good always triumphed over evil, so true love tended to be found when it was needed the most. Henry had quoted something, whenever it was darkest, you only had to turn on the light. Emma and Henry had true loves kiss, because that was what was needed to break the first dark curse. She’d had true loves kiss with Henry, because that was what was needed to break the second dark curse.

For Emma to wake David or Snow, there would need to be something more. However, the third dark curse had fizzled out after Hook’s death and loss of magic, seeing as Nimue had been the caster through him. There was nothing other than the sleeping curse to break, and something had to spark the magic to turn a regular kiss, into true loves kiss.

“Regina you need to listen to me, this realm isn’t what you think,” Robin said urgently, his eyes flickering around the forest. His expression turned agonized. “There are ears everywhere, and not all of them are friendly.”

“Robin, you aren’t real.” Regina’s voice cracked. “I’m not playing this game.”

“What are dreams?” Robin asked desperately. “You know in Storybrooke, the land without magic had all those stories about us, and there were so many different versions. Where did they come from? They had to come from somewhere. Imagination - dreams.”

“What are you trying to say?” Regina muttered tiredly.

She meant what she said, she didn’t want to play this game, but she couldn’t bring herself to walk away either. It was a cruel trick, she craved more of what was hurting her so badly. Hearing Robin’s voice, glancing at his face, he looked so real. They’d had so little time together really and she was hungry for more. Sometimes she was scared she was going to forget the sound of his voice, hearing it again was like a balm to her soul, one that left a nasty painful after-burn.

“This realm doesn’t just connect worlds, it connects realities. Morpheus isn’t from our world, he’s from another, one that he can no longer return to, which is why he wants a path to ours,” Robin explained, with a trace of reluctance.

“Not _ours_ Robin,” Regina protested, with a surge of bitterness. “ _Mine_ , you’re not real!”

“There’s a lot of people here Regina,” Robin continued. He closed his eyes for a moment, and Regina felt a pang in her heart, he looked as tired as she felt. “One of them explained it to me, it’s from the land without magic, what he called a scientific principle. Energy can’t be created or destroyed, a soul can’t be obliterated. It just sent me here. I _am_ real, Regina.”

Regina shook her head, this was just another cruel trick. She wanted to believe his words were true, which was what the nightmare realm wanted. It wanted her to have hope, only so it could crush it in front of her. This was what it meant to live in a world full of memories and regrets. However, she reached out with her magic anyway and her lip trembled. He felt as real as she did, and suddenly she didn’t know if she could trust her magic. This couldn’t be real, could it?

“Regina,” Emma called, trampling through the trees.

“Over here,” Regina answered, she wiped the tears from her face with the back of her hand.

Emma stumbled out from the trees and her eyes widened as she caught sight of Robin. Morpheus appeared behind her and for a brief moment he scowled, before his expression turned neutral. Regina kept her expression blank, careful not to betray that she had noticed. It only increased her suspicions about ‘Morpheus’ but then she wasn’t sure what to think anymore. How could they tell what was real, or what was not, in the nightmare realm?

“How ...?” Emma gestured to Robin.

Regina shrugged. “I don’t know, just go with it.”

“Ok,” Emma said slowly, side-eyeing Robin again. She shook herself to re-focus. “Morpheus said that dad is here somewhere.”

“Well actually what I said is if your parents are swapping over, they will be relatively easy to find,” Morpheus corrected. “The entry point to this realm is the same for everyone.”

Emma’s jaw dropped. “Please tell me that means they aren’t facing a dragon?”

Regina shook her head. “I don’t think so, the Evil Queen wants to keep Snow and David apart, but with the agony of hope to make it that much worse. Killing them would defeat the point of the sleeping curse. The dragon is just after us.”

“Well that’s good, but we still have a problem,” Emma pointed out. “Like you just said, the dragon wants to kill _us_. If we go back to the entrance, we’re not going to be hard to find.”

Robin gave a tight smile. “Leave that with me.”

*****

The door to Snow and David’s apartment was violently thrown open. Belle jumped at the loud bang, as the door hit the wall, and her neck cracked as she turned to look. Hook was framed in the open door, panting as if he had been running, a sheen of sweat on his face.

Zelena sighed and rolled her eyes. “Let me guess, it didn’t go according to plan. You lot are useless.”

“The Evil Queen reversed the trap, she’s sent Emma and Regina into the world behind the mirror,” Hook gasped, confirming Zelena’s words.

Snow’s hand flew to her mouth, and her face crumpled. Belle felt another wave of sympathy. Emma was Snow’s daughter, and that hadn’t changed even with the curse meddling with the age difference. Snow was a good person, and Belle was sure that she felt just as strongly about Emma, as she felt for her unborn son. If Hook had arrived a minute later he would have found an empty apartment, they had been about to leave.

“What about Rumplestiltskin?” Snow asked, her mind skipping tracks back to the previous problem, the one that maybe they could do something about. “We were just about to come and find you. He has the shears of destiny.”

Hook growled. “The crocodile wasn’t there.”

“Emma is safe from Rumple while she’s in the mirror world,” Belle pointed out. “How do we get them back?”

“I don’t bloody know,” Hook exclaimed. He glanced at Zelena who swiftly shrugged. “The crocodile will know, he always does.”

Snow chewed on her lip, agonizing indecision playing out across her face. Belle watched as her expression turned resolute, and she strode over to the kitchen counter. Henry frowned as she grabbed a notepad and a pen, scrawling a quick note on the top, before heading back to the bed and laying down next to David.

“You should be here for this, you’ll know what to do,” Snow whispered.

Belle grimaced, feeling acutely uncomfortable, that was a private moment that they shouldn’t have witnessed. Snow gently pressed her lips against Davids, and there was the rainbow flash of true loves kiss. She fell back against the pillows and David’s eyes snapped open, as he took his first breath. He bolted upright and looked around.

David’s expression turned grim. “What’s happened?”

*****

The door slamming violently back, and the bell ringing loudly in protest was a very familiar sound. Rumplestiltskin sighed to himself, and reluctantly removed his hands from the spinning wheel. He hadn’t really done any spinning since Zelena, since Bae’s death. He had spun for Hades, but he couldn’t spin for himself, it didn’t bring him peace any longer. However, there was nothing to do now but wait and Belle’s words were still echoing in his brain.

He had thought he would to try to spin to forget, but the bissful blankness that had helped him survive a couple of hundred years without his beloved boy, no longer came easily. His hands knew the task, but his gut churned uneasily, and his mind refused to be silent. It was almost a relief to have a distraction, even if it was bound to be unpleasant.

“Crocodile!” Hook roared.

Rumplestiltskin sighed heavily, and got to his feet. He pushed back the curtain that separated the backroom from the front of his shop. His heart skipped a beat, seeing Belle along with the others. She was glaring at him, her eyes like flint, the sharpness of her lips. There was no warmth there now, not for him, only coldness and hatred.

“Well this is quite the party,” Rumplestiltskin said lightly. “Do what do I owe the honor?”

“You know why,” Hook snarled. “The Evil Queen has trapped Emma and Regina in the world behind the mirror. You’re going to tell us how to get them back.”

Rumplestiltskin laughed mockingly. “Oh, really dearie? Why would I do that?”

“Because it’s the right thing to do,” Belle said sharply, before anyone else could say anything.

Once upon a time, Belle would have noticed his expression tighten. She had once known him better than anyone else, but that time had gone. He had always been good at misdirection, at letting people see what they wanted to see, and therefore protecting his weaknesses. He would regret this later, but it was necessary, and Belle already hated him, so it wasn’t like it mattered. He said nothing, he let the silence drag on, until David sighed knowingly.

“You want a deal? Let’s deal. What is it that you want?” David asked.

Rumplestiltskin clicked his tongue, as he pretended to think it over. He trailed his hand over the glass counter, as he moved round, putting the counter between him and everyone else. “When there’s two interested parties, a deal can always be struck.” He smirked, and waited a beat. “You have nothing I want.”

“There must be something,” David pressed. “I’ll give you anything.”

“Anything,” Rumplestiltskin breathed. He chuckled lightly. “I do love it when people say that, but no I’m not dealing today.”

“It’s because of her isn’t it?” Henry demanded. Rumplestiltskin’s heart clenched, hearing the hurt in Henry’s voice. “The Evil Queen, you’re working with her, and so you don’t care about my moms anymore.” His voice grew quieter. “You don’t care about me.”

Rumplestiltskin ached to reassure him, but he couldn’t do it. The die had been cast, and he wouldn’t risk his son for anything, not even for his grandsons feelings. His mind flashed to a dark place, suddenly wondering what he would do if he had to choose between them, one life or the other. Henry didn’t care about him, he had made that clear, and so Rumplestiltskin hadn’t pushed for a relationship. Why would he open himself up to rejection like that? However, Henry was still Bae’s son. Henry had meant a lot to Bae, which meant that Henry meant a lot to him, but he couldn’t tell him that, not now and perhaps not ever.

What he wanted to say, was to remind Henry of what had happened around the breaking of the first dark curse. He had manipulated Emma into fetching the vial of true loves potion, and then had stolen it so that he could bring magic to Storybrooke. Emma had believed that he had let Henry die, but he had always known that Henry would be fine and that the curse would break. It was the same here, he was going to refuse to help _because_ he knew it would be fine. Emma and Regina would return soon enough, without any assistance from anyone here.

“I’m not dealing today,” Rumplestiltskin repeated. “Now I would like you all to leave, please.”

Belle shot him a withering look and stormed out. Zelena’s lips quirked, making him quite sure she was enjoying this, and then she sauntered out. Henry gave him a sad look and shoved his hands in his pockets before following. That just left David and the pirate, and the pirate was looking furious.

“Killian come on, we’ll hit the books, we’ll find something we always do,” David said reassuringly, gripping Hook’s shoulder firmly, presumably to stop him from doing something stupid.

“I won’t forget this,” Hook snarled, before ripping his shoulder away from David’s hold and striding towards the exit.

David sighed, and waited until the door banged shut. “Are you sure there’s nothing you can do?”

“Quite sure,” Rumplestiltskin said crisply. David nodded and Rumplestiltskin got the sudden feeling, that David knew that there was more he wasn’t saying, but had decided now wasn’t the time to press. “They’ll be fine.”

The words tumbled out of his mouth before he’d even realized he’d said them. Rumplestiltskin grimaced minutely, and David smiled softly at him, before turning to leave. The moment the door shut behind David, Rumplestiltskin slammed his fist down onto the counter. For half a second he had let his emotions overwhelm his common sense.

Hopefully his brief moment of compassion wouldn’t alter anything, because the situation was delicate and there was far too much at stake. Magic tingled in the air, and Rumplestiltskin raised an eyebrow seeing the Evil Queen materialize in front of him. She gave an evil laugh and stalked towards him, her hands coming up to grip the lapels of his suit.

“Their panic is absolutely delicious. Oh no,” the Evil Queen mocked. “Emma and Regina are trapped in the nightmare realm, what shall we do?”

She laughed again, her hand trailing over his chest. He fought the urge to flinch, this pretend romance had served it’s purpose, and Belle _hadn’t_ been jealous, there was no reason for it continue. They might be separated, Belle might hate him, but he had been honest when he had said _‘the only future I want, is one where you and I are together.’_ If he couldn’t be with Belle, he didn’t want to be with anyone. She had been his true love, she had been _it_ for him, there would never be anyone else.

“Yes well,” Rumplestiltskin muttered, moving away from her. “You and I both know there’s a way out, and sooner or later they will find it. Nothing ever seems to stick with you.”

The Evil Queen flinched, taking a step back herself. “Insulting a lady is no way to win her affections,” she purred.

“And what makes you think, I have any interest in your ...” Rumplestiltskin looked at her disdainfully. “Charms.”

“That wasn’t what you said earlier,” the Evil Queen said petulantly.

“Actually I didn’t say anything earlier,” Rumplestiltskin corrected her. He shook his head, he was irritated and done with this. From here on out, it would soon no longer matter anyway. “Our alliance has served it’s purpose, but remember dearie we have a deal. You can’t hurt Belle or my son.”

The Evil Queen glared daggers at him, and violently gestured, purple smoke transporting her somewhere else. Rumplestiltskin’s lips quirked, magic itself would enforce _that_ particular deal, because he would struggle to trust Regina’s word on a good day. He definitely didn’t trust the word of a split magical construct, that was only half a person at best. It was going to be something the Evil Queen found out to her cost. His hand closed around the shears in his pocket. All magic came with a price, and it was a price he was finally willing to pay.

*****

“Stop.” Robin’s arm flew out, gripping Emma tightly to stop her from taking another step. “See that shimmer in front of you?”

Regina’s eyes narrowed, and she raised a hand, gesturing over it, making the air ripple more obviously. It wasn’t a barrier, like the shield that surrounded Storybrooke, but it was definitely a division between where they were, and the land in front of them. She turned a quizzical glance on Robin who grimaced.

“The nightmare realm is different for everyone. People have different nightmares. Where we are, is outside that part of the realm. However, if we walk through this barrier, we’ll walk into our own nightmares,” Robin explained.

“How is that possible?” Emma asked. “Morpheus said the entry point was the same for everyone, so either my mom or dad should already be in there. So we’ll be walking into their nightmare, right?”

“No.” Morpheus shook his head. “We’ll need to defeat our individual nightmares before we can leave. Once we’re out of the nightmare, then we’ll be at the entry point to this land.”

“But you were in our nightmare to transport us out of it,” Regina argued.

Morpheus smirked. “Was I indeed? Well I _am_ Morpheus.”

Regina snorted but said nothing. Morpheus’s eyes glinted and her suspicion deepened yet again. He was playing them, she was certain of it, but he had power and she had worked with people with their own agendas before. They would just make sure to double cross him, before he could double cross them. It would be fine.

“I suggest we move quickly,” Robin said, eyeing the barrier with trepidation.

“Let’s do it,” Emma agreed, striding forward, and disappearing.

Morpheus smiled at them, and then stepped through the barrier, leaving Robin and Regina alone. Regina took a step forward and Robin grabbed her wrist.

“Be careful,” Robin murmured, bringing her hand up to lightly kiss the back of it.

Regina wrenched her hand away, and dove through the barrier. She still wasn’t sure what to believe but she couldn’t deal with it. It was the only thing she sympathized with the Evil Queen about - the pain of being alone. She had loved Daniel and he had died, she had loved Robin and he had died. It felt like she was destined to be alone, to lose everyone she ever loved. Once she had lashed out, but she had learned from that and the Evil Queen wasn’t part of her anymore.

However, having her dead true love dangled in front of her, was a step too far. She didn’t know what she might do, and she ran as much from Robin as from herself. She just couldn’t deal with the idea that he might not be dead, just trapped. She had gone to the underworld for Emma, to save Hook. When Robin had died, and Hook had returned, she had been bitter but she had understood that was the way life was. She lost everyone, while Snow and Emma got everything. It had felt like fate, but now she wondered.

What if Robin could be saved?


	3. Chapter 3

When Regina stumbled through the barrier, she had just been thinking about getting away from Robin, or fake Robin, or whatever was happening with him. She hadn’t been thinking about what kind of nightmare she would face. If she had thought about it, then she would have expected the broken remains of her palace again. Instead she was in Storybrooke. She looked up at the clocktower, which was set to 8:15 as it had been for twenty-eight years.

The wind made leaves rustle down the street and Regina shivered. She had never seen Storybrooke look so empty, not since Underbrooke but then she had Emma, Robin and everyone else by her side. This time she was alone. She swallowed nervously and then drew herself up to her full height, flexing her hands by her side. Her eyes darted around, looking for movement, but there were no signs of life.

She started walking down Main Street, heading in the direction of the Mayor’s office. She had a sinking feeling that is where this nightmare was going to play out, and Morpheus or whoever he was, had said they needed to beat their nightmare to leave. So she planned to face it head on and get the hell out of this place. Nothing happened on the walk to her office, just confirming her suspicions that she was heading in the right direction.

It was eerie to walk through an abandoned Storybrooke. There were cars parked all along the street, there was even a child’s bike with it’s wheel still turning. It was like everyone had just been here, and then they’d vanished in an instant. It was an illusion, nothing more. Regina took a deep breath, the more she let it unsettle her, the more power she would give it. Fortunately sarcasm was a strength of hers.

“Regina,” Hades breathed, he was perched on the edge of her desk. “How nice of you to join me.”

“Oh please,” Regina scoffed. “Is this the best you’ve got?”

She formed a fireball in her hand and threw it at Hades. He made no effort to dodge and just laughed, the fireball splashing harmlessly against his chest. It didn’t even singe his suit. Regina’s eyes flickered from Hades, back to her hand, in shocked disbelief.

“You’re staring at your hand like it’s betrayed you,” Hades taunted. “Your magic isn’t going to work here.”

“It worked just fine earlier,” Regina growled.

The dragon had dodged her fireball, and Hades just laughed. What was the difference between the two encounters? It wasn’t that she was believing that this was real, she was trying her damndest to give this hellscape as little power as possible. She formed another fireball, ignoring Hades mocking smile. She had started to doubt her magic since the dragon, after she had seen Robin she didn’t know what was real or not.

Her magic said he was real, but she didn’t know what to believe. She needed to believe in her magic, or it would fail her. However, if she was to believe that her magic worked properly down here, then she would have to believe what it told her, which meant that Robin was real. He was dead, and trapped, and she still didn’t know what to do with that. Could he be saved? Could this be a second chance?

It wasn’t that she didn’t want it to be true, it was that she was afraid. Circumstances worked out for others, they had the miracles, and she had the regrets. She couldn’t trust in good fortune, because that sort of thing didn’t happen to her. Although, even if it was true and it was really Robin, he was still dead and trapped in this nightmare realm. Saving him wouldn’t be easy, and might even be impossible. That should be a depressing thought, but instead it gave her strength. Being taunted by being so near, and yet so far, that was a reality she _could_ believe in. Regina formed another fireball and Hades started to laugh.

“That’s not going to do anything.” Hades smirked.

Regina threw the fireball and Hades stopped smirking. He collapsed sideways and the world shimmered. Her office faded out of existence to be replaced with the destroyed pavilion they had arrived in. Regina frowned, she had assumed that they had arrived in her nightmare, but perhaps with the red sky and the shadows everywhere, this was just the nightmare realm. It had to take it’s form from somewhere. The underworld had been a warped form of Storybrooke, so perhaps the nightmare realm was a warped form of the Enchanted Forest, which would explain why they were by the ruins of her castle. It would also explain how ‘Morpheus’ had transported them out, he hadn’t entered her nightmare at all, he had just let her assume that.

She glanced around nervously, wondering where the dragon was and the others. She appeared to be the first one out, but then her nightmare had been easy to defeat. She could take that pain, because she already felt it everyday. It was an image burnt into her mind, one she couldn’t escape. It was her _living_ nightmare. Regina flexed her hands, she hated waiting and she hated feeling useless. She wondered what nightmare Robin and Emma were having to fight, and she wished that she was with them, so they didn’t have to fight it alone.

*****

The absolute last thing she had expected to see, when she stepped through the barrier, was her apartment in New York. Emma had expected monsters and magic, she had expected to be in the fight for her life, she hadn’t expected a cot. Emma frowned, moving forward, there was a tiny wriggling baby inside. Suddenly she heard footsteps behind her, Emma whirled round and prepared for battle, and her jaw dropped.

“Is she fussing again?” Neal asked with a warm grin. He brushed past her and reached into the cot, carefully picking up the baby and cradling her against his shoulder. The baby kept wriggling and Neal took the tiny hand and waved it gently in Emma’s direction. “Say hi to mommy, mommy’s home.”

“This isn’t real,” Emma stammered.

Neal gave her a quizzical look and nodded. “That’s kinda the point.” He laughed. “That is why _this_ is your nightmare Emma. It’s the life you wanted, and now can never have.”

“I love Killian,” Emma stated weakly.

“Maybe, or maybe you just love the idea of him.” Neal shrugged. “Either way it doesn’t matter. I’m dead, any kind of future with me is off the table. Hook wins by default.”

“It’s not like that,” Emma insisted hollowly.

Neal grinned and raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure?”

Emma looked away from him, and moved to the far edge of the apartment, where the kitchen was. Putting the kitchen island between herself and Neal, gave her room to breathe again. She didn’t know, and she wasn’t sure, and what kind of nightmare was this anyway? This wasn’t fair, how could she fight this? Her hand started shaking, and she took a deep breath, willing it to stop. There had to be a trick to this somehow, something that mentally she had to overcome.

What was this nightmare playing on? Her hidden doubts about Killian, her hidden grief over Neal, her fear that she would never belong anywhere because she still missed normality? How could she beat her own feelings? She couldn’t change how she felt. She did love Killian, she had held onto him and she needed him but, in the privacy of her own mind, she had to admit sometimes it was smothering. She didn’t feel like herself anymore, more like an actor following a script, just lurching from one disaster to another.

She was the savior, and she was going to die. Killian wasn’t going to get his happy ending. She would be leaving Henry, her parents, Regina. For the first time since Neal, she had people in her life that cared about her, and would miss her when she was gone. She wanted to get back to them, she didn’t want to be trapped in a world that wasn’t real. It was cruel, giving her this glimpse of a life that could never happen. Neal was right, that was why it was her nightmare. Also, crucially it was something she couldn’t fight, and therefore wasn’t prepared to deal with.

“Have you figured it out yet?” Neal asked with an amused tone.

“Why? Are you going to help me?” Emma snarked, before her lips twitched and she started laughing. Neal laughed as well, and for a minute Emma felt free and alive again, and then she snapped back to reality. She suddenly knew what to do. “I’ve really missed you.”

“Don’t do it Emma,” Neal murmured sadly.

Emma smiled sadly back and then wrapped her arms around him. For a moment she relished his warmth, how solid and comforting he felt, and breathed in his scent. Then she stepped back.

“Goodbye Neal,” Emma said firmly.

A moment later the world spun, as the apartment faded away. Emma blinked, seeing that she was back on the pavilion where they had first arrived. She was the last one there. Robin was standing close to Regina and Morpheus was leaning against a pillar, half in shadow.

“About time,” Regina exclaimed. “Are you alright?”

“I will be,” Emma murmured.

For all that she had said she would face her fate, she had been terrified. That was why she hadn’t wanted the shears, she would have been far too tempted to use them. She didn’t want to die, she wanted to live, and her survival instinct was very strong. It was what had kept her going through some tough years, and it’s what had led her to making some decisions she regretted.

She said she was the savior, and she was supposed to be a hero. Her parents had bravely walked up to the Evil Queen, and let her take their hearts, expecting that she would crush them and they would die. They hadn’t hesitated to sacrifice themselves for the entire town, and as the savior Emma knew she needed that kind of courage and determination. However, up until now she didn’t think she had it in her. In the past there had always been another way.

To get out of the nightmare, there had been no other way. She had to accept that she was helpless, and that sometimes there was _nothing_ to fight, and she just had to let go. She had to let go of Neal, she had to let go of her fear. Emma knew she had caused so many problems, including Robin’s death because she _hadn’t_ been able to let go of Killian, because she had been unwilling to lose anyone else she loved. She did love him, but she had held on far too tightly and that was why it was smothering. That would be something she would change, if there was time before the end.

“So where’s the dragon, or my mom or dad?” Emma asked.

Morpheus straightened and peered into the distance. “They’ll be here soon enough.”

*****

David stared at the page of the book in front of him, but he wasn’t taking in any of the words. Zelena and Hook were bickering, and he didn’t know what to do. Snow had woken him because she had felt the same. She had left him a note saying that they would beat this and he believed her, he had faith, he did, but the situation was different this time. Every time they had faced problems before, they had done it together and this time that wasn’t an option.

“I think Snow might be better for this,” David muttered, sitting back in his chair.

“It’ll be ok Gramps,” Henry said reassuringly. “At least they are together, and they’ll take care of each other. We need to do the same out here.”

Belle looked worriedly at him. “I haven’t found anything in my books about this shared sleeping curse. I mean from what I know about sleeping curses, it shouldn’t work anyway as you’ve already been under the curse.” She shook her head. “I’m sorry, what I meant was, do you think you should be switching this much? What if it makes it worse?”

“It won’t,” David said with absolute confidence. “It’s true loves kiss, not even the Evil Queen could taint that.” He stood up and stretched. “Snow will be right back, and then you can keep going through these books.”

David strode out of the library and started to jog back to the apartment. A few minutes later he was standing at the counter, re-reading Snow’s brief note. He stroked the page beneath his fingertips, and picked up the pen. He scratched ‘of course we’ll beat this. I love you,’ and nodded in satisfaction. He walked over to the bed, laid down and turned onto his side, propping himself up on his arm.

“Oh Snow,” David breathed, he stroked her face, bent down and kissed her gently.

There was a rainbow flash and David had enough control to twist, so that he fell onto his back. His eyes slipping closed as the sleeping curse took hold.

*****

“Is that good or bad?” Regina asked dryly, as the world started to shake.

There was a roaring sound and she waited for the dragon to suddenly swoop down on them. The damaged pillars cracked further, and loose stone crashed to the ground. Emma’s eyes were wide as she braced herself against the shaking ground. Robin looked a little uneasy, but it was Morpheus that told Regina there was nothing to fear, he just looked amused. An almighty crack rent the air, like a lightning bolt hitting the ground. There was a pop, David burst into existence, and immediately the shaking stopped.

“Well that was dramatic,” Regina drawled.

“Dad,” Emma exclaimed.

  
“Emma!” David wrapped his arms around her, returning Emma’s needy hug, before pulling back to look her over. “Are you alright?” He glanced over at Regina, blinking at the sight of Robin “Are you both alright?”

“We’re fine,” Emma said reassuringly.

“That _might_ not be true,” Regina warned, looking past David and Emma to the sky above.

There, swirling through the red sky, was the serpent dragon. Almost as if it heard her words it roared angrily and dove in their direction. Regina looked at Emma, her eyes flickering down to Emma’s hand which was steady for the moment. Robin reached back, pulling an arrow with his quiver and notching his bow with a smooth motion. He took aim and fired, hitting the dragon in it’s side.

“Nice shooting,” David complimented. He looked down at his empty hands. “I don’t suppose anyone has got a sword.”

“I was aiming for it’s head, but it’s swaying about too much,” Robin griped, notching and firing another arrow, which struck the dragon on the other side.

“Here,” Morpheus murmured. He waved his hand and with a puff of smoke, a glittering sword appeared on the ground in front of David.

“Are you ready for this?” Regina asked Emma warily, moving to her side.

David scooped up the sword, and moved to Emma’s other side, as Robin continued to fire arrows over their head. Emma looked at her hand, it was almost an exact repeat of their conversation the day before. Only that time they had been preparing to take on the Evil Queen, not a heartless dragon under the Evil Queen’s control.

“Seems so.” Emma shrugged, bringing her magic to the surface.

“Together,” Regina prompted.

Simultaneously Regina and Emma threw out their hands, sending spiraling red and grey magic up to the rampaging dragon in the sky. The strands of magic hit the dragon and it reared, and roared, but it kept on with it’s inexorable descent towards them. Regina twisted her hand, increasing the magic, trying to bind the dragon in threads of magic to hold it in place. However, the threads snapped easily, like twigs underfoot with the dragon’s weaving flight pattern.

“That dragon is _not_ stopping,” Regina complained. “It’s turning into a damn pin cushion.”

“Give me a boost,” David suggested. “Before it breathes fire.”

Regina just stared at him. She had always known David was recklessly brave, but jumping on top of a flying dragon seemed a little crazy even for him. Emma shook her head in silent protest and Regina grimaced, it seemed it would be up to her, to provide the necessary magic. She did _not_ want to have to face Snow if this went wrong. There would have been a time she would have gleefully thrown David at a rampaging dragon, but that wasn’t her anymore. Before she could do anything, David rocketed up to the sky. Regina twisted and glared at Morpheus.

“You know, you could help,” Regina snapped.

Morpheus shrugged and smiled. “I think I just did.”

Regina’s gaze snapped forward, just in time to see David land on the dragons back. The dragon tried to twist away, and then buck to dislodge him but it was too little, too late. The silver sword flashed, reflecting light from who knows where in this hellscape. Regina winced as the bright light hit her eyes, and then the sword swung down, biting deep into the dragons neck. The dragon stopped weaving so hypnotically in flight, and Regina flung out a rope of magic to grab David, and pull him away before gravity finished the fight for him.

David hit the ground slightly harder than she intended, rolling over and then popping back onto his feet, the bloodstained sword clutched tightly in his hand. The moment before the dragon crashed into the dirt, it’s outline shimmered and shrunk, transforming back into a man. David rushed over, dropped to his knees, and pressed his hand against the blood pouring from the mans neck.

“Help me!” David yelled.

Emma took a step forward, and Regina grabbed her upper arm, shaking her head. “That’s a mortal wound, the price of the magic would be another life.”

Regina’s eyes flickered to Robin, remembering the first time she’d thought she’d lost him. She had pressed her hand against the blood seeping from his side, but it had been the poison in his veins that was the real problem. That had been a mortal injury, and her magic couldn’t heal him as the poison had been keyed to her. She had begged Emma, but all magic came with a price, and that was why the Fury had come to Storybrooke. It needed a life, as payment for Robin’s life.

“Dad he’s gone,” Emma muttered.

The flow of blood started to slow, and the dragons eyes were closed. David sighed heavily and got to his feet. He stared at his blood stained hands, and blood splattered clothing, and shook his head.

“I didn’t know he was a man,” David mumbled.

“The Evil Queen had his heart, he was trying to kill us,” Emma explained, and David paled further.

“Well, we did what we had to do,” David said bracingly, pointlessly trying to wipe the blood off his hands onto his jeans.

Wordlessly Morpheus waved a hand, vanishing the blood. It left David physically clean but Regina knew he would still feel tainted. This was the Count of Monte Cristo all over again. She’d had to kill him, to save David and Snow, because the Evil Queen held his heart and there was no other way to stop him. Just because it was necessary, didn’t mean it felt right. The Count and the Dragon had both been innocents in this particular dispute, their current actions weren’t their fault and yet they’d had to pay the ultimate price for them anyway.

“So what now?” Emma asked, pointedly changing the subject.

“Now, we have all we need to _finally_ leave this place,” Morpheus declared, strolling purposefully around the ruins of the pavilion, until he saw what he was looking for with the center stone. He crouched down and nodded in satisfaction.

“No!” Robin said forcefully. “I won’t allow that.”

Morpheus gestured negligently, a bolt of magic flying from his hand, like an arrow towards Robin.

“No!” Regina screamed, jumping in front of Robin.

They both disappeared.

“What did you do? Where did you send them?” Emma demanded, taking a threatening step forward. She brought her hand up to blast him with magic and it started shaking uncontrollably.

“Who are you?” David added, moving in front of Emma and raising the bloodstained sword, the tip pointed directly at Morpheus’s throat.

Morpheus ignored them both, and the center stone broke in half, revealing a elaborately carved lock. It looked vaguely familiar to Emma but before she could get a closer look, Morpheus’s palm became slick with blood, the same blood he had cleaned from David. He turned the key and there was a bright flash of light. There was a whistling sound, piercing and painful, and then Emma felt her feet hit the ground hard, even though it didn’t feel like she’d moved. She fell to the floor and looked around. She was in front of the large mirror in Regina’s vault, David and Morpheus were nowhere to be seen.

“Oh, this is not good,” Emma groaned, pushing herself to her feet. She moved swiftly to the steps to leave, only to hit a magical barrier and be thrown back, landing hard on the ground for the second time in as many minutes. “I’m trapped.” Her mouth settled into a grim line, as she hauled herself back onto her feet. “And I have no way to warn them.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think there’s going to be probably two more chapters after this. Again, nothing has been fixed but we’re getting there. This completely ignores actual episode 6.08 (which I still haven’t seen) as the canon diverged from the end of 6.07. Bonus points to anyone who guesses where Morpheus came from and what he wants. I dropped some pretty heavy hints.

David bolted upright, gasping for breath as if he’d just run a marathon, not been laying unresponsive on the bed in a sleeping curse. The nightmare realm was something he hadn’t mentioned during his brief waking time. He didn’t want Emma to feel any worse about the situation, and it was something he had planned on talking about with Snow, when they were eventually reunited. They had both gone through it before, so the nightmares were nothing new.

It had been different this time though. Perhaps as a side effect of the shared sleeping curse, he hadn’t been fighting through his own nightmares, he had just been landing in the nightmare realm itself, which had been enough itself to spark several fresh nightmares. It was not a nice place, but due to the swapping neither of them had spent much time there. He hadn’t connected the nightmare realm, with the world behind the mirror, otherwise the moment that Regina and Emma had been banished there, he would have gone looking for them.

He shook himself. A quick glance around the apartment told him that it was empty, which probably meant that everyone was still at the library. He didn’t think he had been gone that long, but it was hard to tell. It was still daylight outside but it was fading fast. David grabbed his jacket, and headed out, taking the stairs two at a time, and then jogging down the street. He needed to warn the others, the only problem was he wasn’t sure what he was warning them about.

The sorcerer that had been with Regina, Emma and Robin hadn’t given his name. Due to the fight with the dragon he hadn’t had an opportunity to ask. He was grateful to him for finding the way out of the nightmare realm. That appeared to have broken the sleeping curse, unless it had just swapped back to Snow. However, this sorcerer’s intentions were definitely hostile. David had no idea where he had sent Regina and Robin, or where Emma now was. Truthfully his mind was spinning. The fact that Robin had been there, raised so many questions, but that couldn’t be the priority right now.

“David!” Snow shrieked, the moment he burst through the library door.

Her chair toppled over and fell to the ground behind her, as she bolted to her feet, running over and throwing her arms around him. Their lips met, and though it wasn’t true loves kiss, David could still feel the power of true love simmering through them. They hadn’t been trapped, and kept apart for long, nothing would ever keep them apart forever, but he had still missed her so much.

“David mate, great to see you, but how are you awake?” Hook asked, a perplexed expression on his face.

“The world behind the mirror and the nightmare realm are one and the same,” David explained, he reluctantly loosened his grip around Snow. He would love to just hold her and not let go, but Storybrooke needed their help first. “I think Regina might still be trapped there, I’m not sure where Emma is, I think she made it out but ...”

“We need to find her,” Hook interrupted roughly.

“We will,” David promised. “But the door to the realm, wasn’t found by us. Someone else has come to Storybrooke. I didn’t get a name, but he has magic and he banished Regina somewhere, before he turned the key. I don’t think he’s a friend.”

Henry snorted. “What else is new?” David’s lips twitched, it was hardly a laughing matter but they did seem to gain a new villain, the moment they dealt with one. “Can you describe him Gramps, maybe he’s in the book?”

David shook his head. “I didn’t recognize him, and aside from the magic he looked quite unremarkable. Typical Enchanted Forest clothing, he looked to be maybe about Emma’s age, dark eyes, brown hair.”

“That’s not a lot to go on,” Henry noted, before brightening. “There’s pictures in the book, maybe we should look through those.”

He turned and dashed back to the table, pulling the authors book from his ever-present backpack. He put it on the table, and started leafing through it. David moved, so that he could look over Henry’s shoulder, Snow still pressed tightly against him, they probably couldn’t slip a piece of paper between them. He didn’t really want to look at the book right now, he felt this itch to move, to do something. However, without Emma or Regina, they didn’t have any magic on their side and while searching the town manually might make him feel better, but it wouldn’t be very efficient.

“Do you have any ideas Belle?” David asked, suddenly realizing Belle hadn’t said a word.

“No, sorry,” Belle murmured quietly, her hand dropping down to her stomach.

David frowned, usually she had more to offer than that, but he caught her movement and wondered if perhaps she felt unwell. He knew from Snow, that morning sickness didn’t just happen in the mornings. He shot her a reassuring smile, and turned his attention back to the book. It wouldn’t take that long to look through all the pictures, and if it gave them an identity on this new sorcerer, then they might be able to start working out what he wanted, only then would they be able to stop him.

*****

Belle had felt her blood freeze the moment David had described the sorcerer. She could be wrong, and she seriously hoped she was wrong, but the sick knowing feeling in her gut said otherwise. There was no evidence, just circumstantial coincidence, which is why she had remained silent. She hadn’t told anyone about what had happened to her while under the sleeping curse, and nobody had asked either. Which was good because her son matched David’s description, and she had met him while in the nightmare realm.

At least she had thought that she had met her son. He had woken her from the sleeping curse, and she had felt a connection to him. While they were separated, she and Rumple were true love which meant any child of theirs was a product of true love. Even though it had seemed illogical, that he could possibly be her child, she had been so certain. She had felt the true love connection, which bound them all together.

Now she wasn’t quite so certain, because her son had warned her about Rumple. Her son had spoken about truth and lies, and had shown outright loathing for Rumple’s manipulations. How could he say those things, and then act in a similar fashion? How could he exist outside of the sleeping curse? Belle knew magic could do some crazy and amazing things, but she really didn’t understand this. However, the possibility that he was her son, kept her silent.

She wouldn’t work against him, not until she knew more. However, even if was her son, if he had villainous intentions she would stand against him. It would break her heart to do it, but nobody got a free pass on being evil, not even family.

*****

Rumplestiltskin waited by the well, he was cloaked in so much magic, he doubted there was a sorcerer alive who could have detected his presence. Technically he didn’t need to be here, not yet, not until afterwards. However, he had nothing else to do but wait, and he needed to do something before he broke into a million pieces. He felt like he was balancing on a knife’s edge, and he was terrified.

The air flickered gold, and Morpheus appeared in the clearing. A dark cloak was wrapped around his shoulders, masking the fact he was still wearing the same garb that Rumplestiltskin remembered from the sleeping curse. He looked calm, just the hint of a smug smile tugging at the edges of his mouth. It looked like he was prepared to wait for as long as necessary, there wasn’t the hint of restlessness in his frame.

However, a cloud of purple smoke and the arrival of the Evil Queen, showed that his patience wasn’t going to be necessary. The moment he saw the smoke, Morpheus flipped the hood on his cloak. It fell over his face, disguising his features. Rumplestiltskin gripped the shears tightly, there was no turning back now.

*****

Waves of magic poured from Emma’s hands, and a bead of sweat formed on her brow, as she tried to break the barrier that was locking her in the vault. It really rankled, that she was locked in here, because she was being imprisoned partially be her own magic. Before she and Regina had gone to confront the Evil Queen, they had prepared the vault to hold her. Regina had once locked herself in this very vault, during the shattered sight spell, unable to break her own magical barrier. Now Emma had the same problem.

“I need to get out of here,” Emma hissed at herself, through clenched teeth.

Suddenly the flow of magic waned, before stopping completely. Her hand started shaking uncontrollably. Emma stared at it, willing it to stop, but if anything it just got worse. Then her legs felt weak, and she staggered backwards, falling against the solid stone wall. She slid to the ground. Something was different, something was worse. The mental flash of her hooded assailant, and a flash of moonlight against the silver sword as it impaled her, came to mind and Emma knew with sick certainty what that meant.

It was going to happen tonight.

*****

“You broke my sleeping curse,” the Evil Queen accused. Rumplestiltskin watched as she prowled round the clearing, her sharp eyes roaming over Morpheus’s form. “Who _are_ you?”

Morpheus said nothing. He held out his hand, and a sword shimmered into existence. Rumplestiltskin nervously rubbed his fingers together. He knew how this encounter had to play out, but he was still afraid. What if he hadn’t covered all eventualities? What if he had made a mistake? It wouldn’t be him that paid the price if he was wrong.

“What do you want?” the Evil Queen demanded. Her eyes flickered to the sword uneasily. “Only those weak in magic, have to turn to such blunt instruments,” she taunted, conjuring a fireball.

She threw it towards Morpheus. He pivoted to the left, raising the sword to deflect it but the fireball fizzled and disappeared the moment it got close. Rumplestiltskin smirked, as the Evil Queen’s eyes bugged out on disbelief. Hissing, she launched a cyclone of dark magic towards him. Morpheus shimmered gold, fading out of existence, to reappear a few feet to the right. The cyclone changed course but evaporated before it reached him.

“Impossible,” the Evil Queen snarled.

Boldly Morpheus strode towards her. He thrust one hand out, a pulse of magic sending the Evil Queen crashing back against the tree behind her. He swung the sword, and the Evil Queen raised her hand, instinct forming the spell. It was quick, and dirty but it deflected the blade enough that it only slashed her cheek. She raised her hands again, but Morpheus flashed gold and vanished.

“You’ve lost dearie,” Rumplestiltskin stepped out of the shadows, waving his hand to dispel the magical cloak which had shielded him from detection.

“Why didn’t my magic work?” the Evil Queen’s eyes flashed. She glared at him. “ _You_ , you did something,” she growled.

Rumplestiltskin nodded. “We had a deal, and you should know that nobody breaks a deal with me.”

“Our deal said I couldn’t hurt the bookworm or your ...” the Evil Queen’s jaw dropped. “Your son. How is that possible?”

“Magic,” Rumplestiltskin taunted, enjoying the look of fury that stole across the Evil Queen’s face. He chuckled lightly. “Don’t worry yourself, you’ll be reunited with your better half soon enough and everything will become clear.”

*****

Regina hit the ground hard, stumbling she threw out her hand for balance, thankfully grabbing onto a very familiar green looking fence. She stiffened as she looked around. They were back in Storybrooke, but it wasn’t _her_ Storybrooke. It was like her nightmare all over again, the town was completely empty, except for Robin next to her. He pushed himself away from the car he had fallen against, his mouth set in a grim line.

“You owe me some answers,” Regina said sharply.

Robin’s head sank down towards his chest, in defeated acquiescence. “I told you, there are ears everywhere and not all of them are friendly.”

“Well Morpheus, or whatever his name really is, is no longer here,” Regina told him firmly. “I need to know everything you know. Where are we, who _Morpheus_ is, what he wants, what he’s done with Emma and David ...”

“Regina, please,” Robin begged, holding up his hands in surrender. He rubbed his face tiredly, his eyes shining with desperation. “Walk with me?”

He held out his arm and unwillingly Regina felt her heart soften. She linked her arm with his, and they started strolling down Main Street. A lump formed in her throat, this was so similar to memories she already had, and it just brought home yet again how much she missed him. Real, or not real, she cherished this extra time with him, despite how painful it was.

“First of all, we are in another part of the nightmare realm, a very long way from the entrance point where we were before,” Robin explained. “I believe Emma and David have left this realm, and are back in the real Storybrooke.”

“And Morpheus?” Regina pressed.

Robin grimaced. “I told you that there’s a lot of people trapped in this realm, and that most of us have accepted our fate.” He paused, and Regina nodded, she remembered him saying that. He shot her a relieved smile. “Well, Morpheus is one of the few who haven’t accepted their fate. He is obsessed with making things right.”

Regina felt her stomach lurch, at how ominous that sounded. Robin’s grim expression and grave tone, only made things worse. She swallowed nervously and straightened, unconsciously flexing her free hand as if she was readying for battle. She stopped walking, coming to a halt underneath the clocktower, and turned to face Robin.

“Obsessed with making _what_ right?”

*****

“I’m just going to go ...” Belle gestured vaguely but nobody was paying attention, so she slipped out of the library doors, and crossed the road to the pawn shop.

The handle turned easily and she sighed in relief, Rumplestiltskin was there. This probably wasn’t going to be pleasant, but she really needed to talk with him. However, when she stepped into the shop, she saw that Rumple hadn’t returned. The shop was exactly how she had left it, after searching for the shears. Belle’s heart sank and she closed her eyes, willing herself not to cry. This was a time for bravery, but she felt so alone and confused.

Nothing had been right in months, not since the town line when she’d commanded him to leave Storybrooke forever. Although, as that had been a consequence of his actions with the hat, the trouble had started much earlier. She hadn’t wanted to see it, and ever since she’d just been reacting. She was numb, tired and she missed her husband. However, she didn’t want to repeat past mistakes, she just didn’t know how to get them back onto the right path, or even if there was a right path anymore.

Perhaps the Rumplestiltskin she had fallen in love with was gone. She had watched him die, and what she and Neal had brought back, wasn’t the same man. Were they even still true love? She had thought so, because she felt the power of true love humming through them in the dream. That had been why she had thought that ‘Morpheus’ was her son, because he was the product of their true love. Belle shook her head, her mind was going round in circles and it wasn’t helping. This wasn’t about them as a couple, this was possibly about their son.

“Rumplestiltskin, Rumplestiltskin, Rumplestiltskin,” Belle called out, her voice wavering slightly.

She took a deep breath, the tension rising to an intolerable level as she waited for him to appear. A moment later, a swirl of crimson smoke formed and Rumplestiltskin appeared in the middle of the shop. He looked at her with concern and Belle swallowed nervously. Every time she saw him, she felt so angry which wasn’t like her. However, this wasn’t about her, this was about their son.

“Nobody fights for their child like their father, you’ve proved that much,” Belle repeated, practically whispering in the oppressive air of the shop. “Do you know? Do you ...”

“Yes,” Rumplestiltskin said gently. “But it’s not what you think.”

Belle laughed, mentally despairing at the hysterical edge of her laughter. “Not, what I think? I don’t know _what_ to think Rumple.”

“I told you, that I would do whatever was necessary to save my son,” Rumplestiltskin reminded her. “You don’t have to fear, by tomorrow everything will be alright.”

“Our son has magic, David thinks he’s a villain, he’s running around Storybrooke as a fully grown adult and yet somehow I’m still pregnant,” Belle summarized, anger making her sarcastic. “How could that possibly be alright?”

“Belle please,” Rumplestiltskin pleaded. “I can’t tell you ...”

“Why?” Belle interrupted, with growing fury. “Because you know I’ll stop you?”

Rumplestiltskin looked sadly at her, utter desolation etched on his face. He then waved his hand, and crimson smoke engulfed him once more, taking him somewhere else. Belle’s anger made her want to rant and rave, but a small rational voice was nagging at the back of her mind. She hadn’t seen Rumple look so scared, yet so resolute possibly ever. Their conversation in the shop a couple of days ago now took on a different complexion.

She had been angry, and she’d let her anger control her tongue, making her go further than she’d intended. She’d hit him where she knew it would hurt, because in that moment she had wanted him to hurt. She’d tried to rationalize it since, as a sharp shock to make Rumple take a good hard look at himself, but really she’d just been angry and had lashed out. It was something she regretted, but she couldn’t take back.

Besides she was still angry, and her simmering anger liked Rumple’s pain. She was hurting, and she wanted him to hurt. It was so unlike her, and it frightened her. It felt like darkness, and she didn’t want to be that person, she wanted to be good. However, the point wasn’t what she had said, the point was that Rumple hadn’t defended himself from her verbal assault. That wasn’t unusual, he rarely did, but there was something about what he _had_ said which was gnawing at her now.

It had been almost like he was pleading with her to understand, which is exactly what had happened just now. He was obviously setting himself up to do something unforgiveable. Belle moaned softly and paced round in a circle. She couldn’t decide what to do for the best. Even if she confessed to the others that this sorcerer was somehow her son, she didn’t know what it was that he wanted. She didn’t even know how it was _possible_ that he was her son.

How had it come to this?

*****

“Obsessed with making _what_ right?” Regina demanded.

“Do you remember what I said about that land without magic rule? Energy can’t be created or destroyed, which is why I’m trapped here ...” Robin started.

“Can you leave?” Regina interrupted.

She was certain that the answer would be no because this was her life, and miracles didn’t happen to her. She had avoided asking up until now because she didn’t want confirmation. Denial was a wonderful thing. Robin looked sadly at her and Regina nodded. She understood, she had known all along. _‘Magic can do much but not that. Dead is dead’_ unless Zeus somehow got involved.

If she knew how she would petition him for Robin, but then her logical side started to argue against her grief. Everyone had lost somebody, Robin deserved better but so did a lot of people. It would be better to just stay with the rule that _‘dead is dead’_ , otherwise everyone would be wanting to bring back loved ones, and the world just couldn’t work like that.

“David can leave because he was never really here, only his mind which will have been reunited with his body,” Robin explained. “You and Emma can leave, because you traveled here, so you can travel back. Morpheus can leave for similar reasons. I’m real, I’m not an illusion but I have no body. So no, Regina, I can’t leave.”

“The pirate got a new body,” Regina muttered.

Robin looked pained. “I’m sorry Regina.”

“I’m sorry too,” Regina murmured hollowly.

There was a pain in her chest. She thought it was just grief, because she had hoped that she was wrong, and that Robin could be saved. However, the pain spiked and her knees buckled. She clutched at her chest and collapsed to the ground. There was a roaring sound, and a sharp crack of lightning. Regina looked ahead of her, and saw the Evil Queen.

Her skin flashed red, with the same magic that made her, and she started to dissolve. Regina felt the Evil Queen slip back under her skin, and she took a shaky breath, her past choices weighing heavily on her. It was even harder to bear, now she’d experienced a brief time without the weight of years of evil deeds on her conscience.

“Regina!” Robin yelled, and Regina became aware that he had been screaming for her the entire time.

“I’m alright,” Regina lied, levering herself off the ground.

Robin held out his hand for her, and she accepted it, shakily getting back onto her feet. The Evil Queen was buzzing beneath her skin, as the memories of their time apart for the last few weeks integrated. Regina grimaced, at how flagrantly her worst self had thrown herself at Rumplestiltskin. Fortunately her old mentor had mostly brushed her off, she hadn’t been certain that would have been the case. Not with how alone and vulnerable he was, and not with how persistent she had expected her worst self would be, given the allure of the Dark One’s power.

She winced, as she learned exactly how the Evil Queen had gained the water from the river of lost souls. They had all blithely blamed Rumplestiltskin, but it hadn’t been him at all. Hades had brought some over, and Zelena had held onto it for a ‘rainy day’. The Evil Queen had found it when was poking around the farmhouse, and had liberated it. Rumplestiltskin’s only contribution had been help modifying the sleeping curse, and Regina couldn’t really blame him for that, seeing as the Evil Queen had offered him the shears of destiny in payment.

Regina had been where Rumplestiltskin was, she had hit rock bottom after the first dark curse had been broken. It had been Cora, her mother, who had manipulated her then. She had lost everything, and was being tormented by Henry being just out of reach. Rumplestiltskin was in the same kind of vulnerable state, and the Evil Queen had attempted to take full advantage. Rumplestiltskin wasn’t a hero, and everyone he cared about had been safe from the Evil Queen’s plans. Belle and their child were safe due to the deal, and if he did care about his grandson, then Henry would have been safe because the Evil Queen had cared for him.

“His son,” Regina breathed, as the last memory of the Evil Queen’s flashed into her mind. “Morpheus is Rumplestiltskin’s son.”

Robin looked troubled, and guilty. He nodded. “Yes, he is.”

Regina shook her head in disbelief. “How?”


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You are all very boring people, nobody even attempted to guess at who Morpheus was. Heh - not serious, you are all lovely people really. I really felt bad for Belle this chapter because I was trying to get in her head, and she was just going “I’m confused, I’m angry, I’m confused, I’m scared and sad and confused, I’m frustrated and I’m confused.” which is pretty much how I feel when watching the show. Anyway, this chapter gives answers! There is one more chapter left because I promised a happy ending :) Enjoy!

Emma huddled against the wall in Regina’s vault, clutching her shaking hand to her chest. She waited, knowing that sooner or later fate would show up to let her out. She had a date with destiny tonight, and she didn’t expect she would be lucky enough to be allowed to miss it. Though she did remember what the seer had said, the path to the future was not absolute.

Perhaps she would only get out of here, because of her own actions. If that was true then fate was going to be disappointed. Her magic wouldn’t work, and there was no other way out, she wasn’t even going to look for one. She was going to stay here, unless someone came to find her and she had to leave. In the nightmare realm she had faced the feeling of utter helplessness, of not having an enemy to fight, but she still wanted to avoid her fate if she could.

She didn’t want to die. She was scared, this wasn’t the ending she had ever envisaged for herself. Henry had told her that her job was to bring back the happy endings, she had never thought that meant she wouldn’t get one of her own. Although perhaps she should have, that did seem to be the theme of her life. Suddenly there was a muffled bang from above. Emma groaned, it seemed that she wasn’t going to be allowed to hide in the vault after all.

Her skin prickled, as she felt the magic barrier fall. Emma pulled herself to her feet and reluctantly walked up the stairs, expecting any minute to run into her family. However, they weren’t anywhere to be seen. The wooden double doors into the crypt were open, showing that night had fallen while she’d been trapped. Warily Emma stepped out of the crypt, and glanced around the graveyard.

From the corner of her eye, she caught movement. She thought it was a shadow, but then realized it was the flutter of a cape. The hooded figure was striding back towards town. It had been her murderer who had let her out. Emma snorted, she had been right - _fate_ had shown up to let her out. It wasn’t going to let her avoid her destiny that easily. For a moment she considered just staying put, her feet frozen to the ground, but then she thought of her family.

She had no idea who her murderer was, or what they wanted. She was the savior, and she couldn’t run or hide, even if her survival instincts were screaming at her to do just that. Emma took a deep breath and started the walk back to town. Storybrooke needed her to save it, one last time.

*****

Belle stayed in the shop for longer than she should have, her mind spinning in circles. It was all too much. She really did just want to find a dark corner to hide in, and try and forget the world. However, her conscience wouldn’t let her. If being a hero was easy, then everyone would do what was right. She couldn’t be the person that she wanted to be, if she hid from her problems. She thought that she had been doing too much of that as it was. Taking a deep breath, Belle left the shop and walked back to the library.

“We need to search for Emma!” Hook’s voice could be heard, from halfway across the street.

“We aren’t even sure if she made it out of the nightmare realm,” David replied reasonably. Belle slipped through the open library door, and saw him run a hand through his hair tiredly. “She was there when the key was turned, but if she was here, then she would have found us by now.”

“We need a tracking spell,” Snow suggested, her expression pinched with concern.

Belle saw Snow’s eyes flicker to her bow, and quiver, which was propped up against the library circulation desk. David’s sword was laying on the table. They were expecting trouble and Belle swallowed nervously. Now she was facing them, she was hesitating again. She didn’t understand what was going on, and she didn’t know what to do for the best. Why couldn’t Rumple just talk to her for a change?

“Belle!” Hook called out, suddenly spotting her. “You can brew up a tracking potion can’t you?”

“I can,” Belle confirmed hesitantly. She screwed up her courage, she needed to tell them about Morpheus.

“Emma!” Hook bellowed. Belle turned and saw Emma framed in the entrance to the library. Hook strode forward, brushing past everyone to wrap her in his arms. “You have got to stop doing this to me Swan.”

“It’s not intentional.” Emma smiled weakly.

“Where were you?” Snow asked.

“Regina’s vault.” Emma gave them a wry look. “We’d locked it down in preparation for the Evil Queen, I couldn’t break my own spell.”

David nodded. “The sorcerer who let us out of the nightmare realm. What do you know about him?”

Belle bit her lip, this should be the moment that she spoke up, but instead she stayed stubbornly quiet, waiting for Emma to say her piece first. It would help if she had more to offer, but all she had was confusion and the sick feeling of foreboding about what Rumple was planning. That wasn’t helpful and Belle couldn’t help but feel that if she spoke up, she was implicating herself for no reason. This wasn’t her fault, she just didn’t understand what was happening or why. If only Rumple would just talk to her.

“His name is Morpheus and that’s about it.” Emma shrugged. “He was quite skilled at steering the conversation away from himself. Regina didn’t trust him, and neither did I.”

“Great, so we still have nothing,” Hook summarized.

“Actually not nothing,” Belle admitted, making everyone turn to look at her. “I just saw Rumple and he’s planning something.”

Hook snorted. “When is the crocodile not planning something?”

“It’s going to happen tonight and ...” Belle continued, trailing off when she saw Emma nod in resignation.

“I saw the hooded figure, he’s the one that let me out of Regina’s vault,” Emma confessed. “My vision ... Belle’s right, it’s going to be tonight.”

Snow’s expression crumpled, and David reached out and took her hand. Belle closed her eyes, how could she admit that Morpheus was her son now? She didn’t know how that was possible anyway. Her hand drifted to her stomach, she was still pregnant. If Morpheus was her son, then there must be something time travel related going on. Belle just wished she understood why he was doing this. He had told her not to let Rumple destroy them, had she failed him? Is that why he was here, because she had been a terrible mother?

Belle took a deep breath, she had to tell them. Just because she didn’t know what it meant, didn’t mean that she was allowed to stay silent. Staying quiet was a form of cowardice. However, before she could say anything, there was a bang, and a white flash consumed her vision. There was a scream. Belle staggered back, feeling the reassuring bulk of the desk behind her, she was blind and deaf and terrified. She blinked rapidly, and the black spots finally started to clear. Hook had fallen to the ground, David had Snow in his arms, in a protective embrace. Henry was leaning against the table, blinking just as fiercely as she had been a moment earlier.

Emma was gone.

*****

Emma had heard the bang, and seen the white flash, but the sight and sound had been strangely muted as if someone had turned the volume and brightness down. A moment later, her senses returned to normal and she heard the scrape of a shoe behind her. She whirled round, and saw the hooded figure. The moment she saw him, he started sprinting away and instinctively she chased after him.

This was it. She had wondered how she had got into a fight with the hooded figure, with her family running up a minute later. This was how they had been separated. Despite knowing that, Emma kept chasing him. All saviors die, it was an inescapable fact. What was about to happen, was going to come to pass whether she accepted it or not. That had been proven already by this hooded figure letting her out of the vault.

Destiny wasn’t going to be denied it’s prize.

The hooded figure stopped in the middle of Main Street, and withdrew a shiny silver sword from beneath the cape. Emma clicked her fingers, and with a puff of grey smoke, she was gripping a sword of her own. Her magic would allow her to do that, but she knew it was going to fail her at a pivotal moment. The sword would be knocked from her hands, she would reach for her magic but her hand would shake, and then Morpheus’s sword would impale her through the stomach.

Emma raised the sword and slashed at him, the moment she got close enough. Morpheus parried, the swords clanging together. The fight was on.

*****

“Emma!” Hook yelled.

David grabbed his sword, and Snow picked up her bow, slinging her quiver onto her back as she moved towards the door. The four of them left, heading towards the sounds of the sword fight. Belle hesitated, she had failed, she hadn’t told them. Now if Rumple did something because of their son, and David and the others failed to stop it because they hadn’t known, that would be her fault.

She pushed herself away from the circulation desk and strode out of the library. It was time to stop being a coward. Up ahead she could see Snow aiming her bow, but not shooting. David was uselessly twirling his blade in agitation and Hook was shielding Henry. The clanging of steel against steel was unnaturally loud. Belle finally drew close enough to see past them, and she saw the hooded figure locked in combat with Emma.

Belle stifled a scream as the figure disarmed Emma, and pivoted on his foot, sword angled to impale her. Before the blade could touch Emma’s skin, the hooded figure froze mid-movement. Emma’s hand had been shaking, but now she was frozen as well, and Belle found she couldn’t move either. There was a bright beam of light, touching all three of them, the beams shot into the darkness. From the shadows, Rumplestiltskin strode forward.

Her heart sank, seeing the shears of destiny in his hand. The beams of light were coming from the shears, or that was where the beams were ending, either way they were connected to the shears.

“Stop this!” David demanded, moving forward towards Rumplestiltskin, raising his sword.

“I wouldn’t do that,” Rumplestiltskin said mildly. “You are no match for me and I don’t want to hurt you.”

Even though he was on the other side of the street, a good dozen feet or more away, Belle could see that the shears were open. “Rumple no, you don’t have to do this!” she screamed, but it was too late.

As she watched, Rumplestiltskin closed the blades of the shears. With a snip, cutting the beams that connected the shears to her, their son and Emma. The beams of light snapped back towards him and Rumple raised his arm, pointing the shears directly to the sky. The beams wrapped around his arm, twisting and wriggling like snakes. They reached his heart and then sank beneath his skin, disappearing from view.

Morpheus staggered backwards, and his hood fell off, revealing the face that Belle remembered from the sleeping curse. “What did you do?” he roared.

Rumplestiltskin ignored him, instead fixing his gaze on Emma. “Miss Swan, you will be pleased to know that you are not going to die today.”

“Why the hell not?” Hook demanded roughly. Emma twitching slightly, warily moved away from Morpheus, moving into Hook’s welcoming embrace.

“Oh I’m sorry, would you rather I’d let her die?” Rumplestiltskin asked sarcastically. “It’s quite simple really dearie, Miss Swan won’t be dying today because she is no longer the savior ... I am.”

*****

Rumplestiltskin waited for the burst of outrage. When it came, it was from a surprising source. Despite having learned who ‘Morpheus’ was, and what he wanted, Rumplestiltskin had expected the first bellow of rage to come from the pirate. However, it was his son who had gone red, his eyes flashing with anger.

“No!” Morpheus screamed. “You can’t, that is wrong, you are no savior, you’re a monster! Undo it, undo it now!”

“Do you know why all saviors die?” Rumplestiltskin asked calmly, it was a rhetorical question and nobody said anything. His eyes moved past the group, meeting Belle’s confused stare, and willing her to understand. “There can only be one savior at a time. Aladdin started getting visions of his demise, the moment you were conceived Miss Swan.”

Belle’s mouth formed a small O, and Rumplestiltskin saw the light of understanding cross her face. He hadn’t been lying when he said that _‘the things that he did, were driven by the love of his son’_. His son had been facing an impossible burden, just simply by the virtue of being born, magic somehow having chosen him as a champion.

Rumplestiltskin had no problem if his son chose to be a hero like his mother, or like his older brother Baelfire because that would be his choice. Belle had been afraid that he would use the shears to cut away their son’s destiny, to make his son love him. It had never been about restricting their son’s choices, it had been about giving him the power of choice - the power to choose his own fate.

“No, no, no!” Morpheus yelled. “You don’t care, stop pretending you care. You don’t change, you never have, you never will and ...”

“I’m sorry,” Rumplestiltskin interrupted. “I’m sorry I wasn’t stronger. I’m sorry that I made the wrong choice. I have no excuse to offer, there is nothing that can make it right ...”

“Will somebody please explain what hell is going on here?” David cut in, his eyes warily moving between Rumplestiltskin and Morpheus, before landing firmly on Morpheus. “Who are you?”

Morpheus just glared and Rumplestiltskin sighed. “He’s my son,” Rumplestiltskin admitted.

Emma’s eyes widened. “What the hell?”

“You didn’t really think the author created an entire universe and fit it in a book did you?” Rumplestiltskin laughed brokenly. “If it had just been the Enchanted Forest then perhaps, but Henry where did you find him? The author had written his own happy ending - in this world.”

“I don’t understand,” Henry mumbled. “Are you saying Morpheus is from the alternate universe Isaac wrote?”

“In a way,” Rumplestiltskin confirmed. “Imagination has to come from somewhere. There are stories in this realm, different versions of all of us. As I understand it, Isaac overlaid our reality, with another reality for a short time, until you broke the link and we returned here. Unfortunately, we’d had an impact in the alternate reality by then.”

“You killed the bandit Regina,” Morpheus accused angrily, practically vibrating with rage. “Henry and Emma both disappeared, they didn’t belong in that reality, which is why they were the only ones who remembered. All anyone talked about was you, how the ‘Light One’, the great hero Sir Rumplestiltskin, had killed a defenseless woman.”

“I would have had no defense, as I wouldn’t have understood why,” Rumplestiltskin added soberly. “There was a bleed through from this reality. The darkness that was taking me over here, affected my judgment there.”

“You don’t know what it was like,” Morpheus muttered, pain practically dripping from his tone.

“So you wanted to undo it,” Rumplestiltskin stated. “You needed Regina, to take the place of her alternate self, which is why Regina is still trapped in the nightmare realm. You took the Evil Queen’s blood, and banished her to join Regina, casting a spell to reunite the two of them, otherwise Regina couldn’t have followed you home, she would have still been tied here by virtue of her ‘worst self’. You needed Emma in order to get there, otherwise you couldn’t return at all.”

“You think you understand everything,” Morpheus spat. “You’re the Dark One, you destroy everything you touch. You think you’ve saved something today?” Morpheus laughed hysterically. “You are no hero, you are _not_ the savior.”

Rumplestiltskin shrugged. “You’re right, I’m a coward but I pulled Excalibur from the stone. That was enough for magic to deem me a hero.”

“You’re not a hero!” Morpheus screamed. “You had every advantage in my reality, and you still chose darkness. You will _always_ choose darkness.”

“No,” Rumplestiltskin breathed. “I will _always_ choose what I love the most.”

“Power,” Hook said disgustedly. “You always want more power. Now you’ve taken Emma’s.” Hook’s eyes flickered to Henry. “You’ve taken what made her special.”

*****

Regina pressed the heel of her hand against her brow, in a pointless attempt to fend off the headache she was getting. Robin had just finished his explanation of who Morpheus was, and where he came from, and Regina didn’t feel any more enlightened than before he’d started. That wasn’t really surprising seeing as the explanation involved time travel, alternate realities, the author and realm hopping.

Honestly it was the most convoluted story she’d heard, about the only thing that made sense was that Morpheus wanted revenge on Rumplestiltskin. That at least was something Regina could sympathize with, her old mentor did have a talent for attracting enemies. She paced up and down the street in a tight circle, before shrugging.

“None of that matters,” Regina realized. “Not here in the nightmare realm anyway.”

Robin nodded in understanding and Regina sighed. They needed to leave this pocket of the nightmare realm, and travel back to the entrance. If she could replicate whatever Morpheus had done, then she could leave this place and warn the others about Morpheus. Although, she hoped that they already knew. Morpheus was working quickly, he had sent her worst self here and Regina’s heart hurt with the fear she felt for Emma.

Regina had wondered why she hadn’t been there in Emma’s vision. Emma had obviously been worried that it was her under the hood, which Regina had found quite hurtful. While it was true that when Emma first arrived in Storybrooke, she would have gleefully impaled her on a sword. Regina had thought they had moved past that, and there was a level of trust between them. She certainly couldn’t imagine any possible reason she would have for harming Emma. In fact Regina hadn’t been able to think of a reason why she wouldn’t be there to defend Emma.

Being trapped in the nightmare realm provided that answer. Emma’s vision was coming to pass today. Not that Regina believed in the vision completely, because she chose to believe instead that Emma would find a way to beat it. They hadn’t just developed trust between them, they’d developed a friendship. They were _both_ Henry’s ‘mom’ and Regina didn’t want to imagine having to finish bringing him up without Emma. They were family. If she was honest with herself, they were the only people she would leave this nightmare realm for.

If it wasn’t for Henry and Emma, she would stay here with Robin.

“You know that I don’t want to leave you,” Regina said pleadingly.

“Oh Regina,” Robin breathed, capturing both her hands with his. He brought her right hand up to his lips and kissed it gently. “I know. This isn’t goodbye.”

“Isn’t it?” Regina said brokenly. “You’re dead Robin, you can’t even more onto the underworld, let alone a better place. You deserved so much better.”

“And I shall have it.” Robin smiled softly, his eyes sad but also hopeful. “This is the world of dreams my love. It won’t be easy, and it won’t happen often, but I’m sure I can visit you on occasion.”

“Really?” Regina couldn’t keep the hope out of her voice. “Do I need to undergo a sleeping curse first?”

Robin laughed gently. “No need, what’s the use of being soulmates if we can’t bend the rules a little. Besides I’m one of the best thieves around, I’m sure we can steal a little extra time.”

Regina’s smile was distantly watery, as her eyes glistened. She blinked, forcing back the tears and Robin wrapped his arms round her. She kissed him with more force than intended, trying to communicate how much she loved him and how much she missed him. After a moment she reluctantly pulled back, taking a shaky breath as she tried in vain to hold onto her composure. Robin’s eyes were soft and Regina’s heart ached with loss even more. With him she didn’t always have to be strong, because he never made her feel weak.

“Now,” Robin murmured. “Let’s get you back home.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story is now complete and the ending is what I would describe as “not unhappy”. If you want to read Rumbelle talking through their issues and actually getting their happy ending my story _Faith of the Heart_ , follows on from my other alternate season six fic _The War Within_. It deals with most of the same issues Rumple and Belle are wrestling with here. Enjoy!

After Hook’s disgusted accusation, there was a ringing silence. Rumplestiltskin didn’t bother to defend himself, no matter what he said the pirate would never hear it. Hook had made up his mind already, and he would never be convinced that Rumplestiltskin had any motives that weren’t utterly selfish. The only one Rumplestiltskin was prepared to defend himself against was Belle, because after everything, her opinion was the only one that mattered. The entire town could hate him, even his grandson, so long as Belle understood. She had been so angry lately, but perhaps now it was all over they could talk.

Finally it was David who broke the increasingly awkward silence. “How can you be the savior? I understand the shears severing people from their fate, but how can you take it from them?”

That was a surprisingly neutral question, but then out of everyone it had always been the shepherd who was most prepared to listen. Regina knew him far too well, and was far too impulsive not to jump to conclusions. Rumplestiltskin’s lips quirked in twisted humor, when it came to jumping to conclusions not even Regina had anything on Snow White. Considering Snow had been raised to rule, and David raised a shepherd, David had a much more level head which befitted a king.

“Miss Swan and I are connected,” Rumplestiltskin began. Hook made a noise of disgust, but he ignored the pirate with practiced ease. “Miss Swan was the savior because of the first dark curse, which I helped craft. She was my successor and my predecessor as the dark one. I know she can still hear the whispers of the dagger.”

“Can you hear my voice in your head?” Emma blurted out.

Rumplestiltskin’s expression softened, turning almost sympathetic. “Don't worry dearie, I learned to prevent communication from the echoes of previous dark ones a long time ago.”

Emma breathed an exaggerated sigh of relief, and Rumplestiltskin felt another unaccustomed stab of sympathy. What respect he had once held for Miss Swan was long gone. However, he knew Nimue’s twisted words, and how the echoes delighted in torment. Then his eyes narrowed, giving Emma an appraising look. He hadn’t died, but it was possible he had still been an echo within the power. Perhaps his image had appeared to torment her, and for that he _was_ truly sorry. Emma had saved them all that day, when he had finally run out of clever plans and the darkness was set to take over.

“My son was to be your successor as savior, by blood and magic we were all connected. No-one else could have ...” Rumplestiltskin sneered in Hook’s direction. “ _Taken_ the savior’s fate, no-one but me.”

“Emma didn't want you too,” Hook said harshly, and Rumplestiltskin sighed.

He had known the pirate wouldn’t listen, but his explanation was for Belle, and for his son from another world. Morpheus still looked angry, but he was listening and that was all Rumplestiltskin knew he could ever hope for there. In a way, Morpheus was and wasn’t his son. Their realities had converged for a brief time, and Morpheus had been forced to live with his actions, but his alternate self was really his true father.

“Miss Swan is still alive, which she would not have been without my intervention,” Rumplestiltskin pointed out.

“She was only in danger because of you,” Hook roared.

“Enough!” Rumplestiltskin blinked, that interruption had come from a surprising source - Belle. She worried at her lip, glancing towards Morpheus. “Rumple what about ...”

Rumplestiltskin nodded, he knew what Belle meant. “It's time you went home son,” he said gently.

“I have no home,” Morpheus muttered bitterly. He might still be angry, but it looked like all the fight had gone out of him. “There's no way back without Emma.”

“Does it require my death?” Emma suddenly asked, looking very determined.

“Emma love,” Hook objected automatically.

“No Killian,” Emma said firmly. “I might not be the savior anymore but that doesn't have to change who I am.” She turned to Morpheus and arched an eyebrow. “So?”

Rumplestiltskin let his gaze flicker over everyone present. He was surprised that neither Snow White, nor Henry, had spoken up thus far but it appeared there was a reason for that. Snow’s lips were pressed firmly together, like she wanted to say a lot of things but was restraining herself. David’s hand was in hers, and Rumplestiltskin felt an unexpected surge of envy. At one point he and Belle had been able to communicate wordlessly like that. Henry appeared to just be observing everything, and for once his grandson wasn’t broadcasting his every emotion.

“Just your blood,” Morpheus admitted unwillingly, pulling Rumplestiltskin’s attention back to the matter at hand.

“Then take it and go home,” Emma offered encouragingly.

Emma raised her hand and turned it palm up, moving her other hand over it. She blinked in surprise when her magic jumped to do her bidding, slicing her palm and letting the blood pool, before siphoning it into a conjured vial. She glanced questioningly in Rumplestiltskin’s direction.

“You are a product of true love Miss Swan, you had magic of your own beyond that of the savior,” Rumplestiltskin explained.

He turned a quizzical glance of his own on Henry, when his grandson’s expression turned into a broad grin. Henry shrugged, and Rumplestiltskin resigned himself to not getting an answer to that question. Now he thought of it, the pirate had been looking at Henry when he said about ‘taking what made Emma special’, so perhaps his grandson had been worried about the loss of magic. Considering Henry had tried to destroy magic twice, Rumplestiltskin couldn’t fathom his reasoning. They would never be close, too much had happened for that, but Henry was still Bae’s son and Rumplestiltskin would always care about him for that reason alone.

Morpheus took the vial of blood from Emma and pulled out not just one, but two very familiar looking wands from inside his clothing. He swept first one wand, and then the other, over the blood and a doorway thudded into existence. It looked both similar to the doors they had seen the apprentices wand create before, and yet there was something different about it. Rumplestiltskin felt the hairs on the back of his neck prickle, that wasn’t just a portal between realms, it was a portal between worlds. It had required both the magic of the apprentice, and the Black Fairy’s wand which could recreate past magic experienced by the user.

Rumplestiltskin reached out with his senses to feel the threads of the magic, before forcing himself to withdraw. No good would come from him obsessing over the impossible. In the infinite multiverse, Bae was certain to be alive and happy in hundreds of different worlds. Rumplestiltskin could hold that fact close to his heart, but he couldn’t allow himself more than that. It was a poisonous dream, and he resolved to lock both wands away where he couldn’t access them. Perhaps Belle would secure them with blood magic against him.

“I still hate you,” Morpheus said hollowly, as the door opened to allow him to step through.

“I would expect nothing less,” Rumplestiltskin replied.

No mere words could make what happened right, nothing could - some things couldn’t be undone. Morpheus nodded in acknowledgment and stepped through the shimmering portal, disappearing back to his world. Rumplestiltskin hoped that the alternate Belle would be there waiting for him. He didn’t know precisely what had happened, he could just make an educated guess. The alternate version of him was likely long dead, or imprisoned, but hopefully Morpheus still had his mother. There was nothing more dangerous, that somebody alone and trapped inside their own mind, with nobody to talk them out of their spiraling thoughts.

“Rumple, take me home,” Belle said softly, moving in front of the others, almost within arms reach.

His eyes flickered over the others, but they seemed disinterested in pursuing further conversation which Rumplestiltskin was thankful for. He didn’t have any more answers, and he didn’t have the energy for their endless accusations right now. He had done what he set out to do, he had removed the unfair burden laid on his unborn child’s shoulders, and in the process saved Miss Swan’s life. Rumplestiltskin felt his expression twist, he knew better than to expect them to be grateful, though by this point he would just settle for a cessation of hostilities.

“Where's that?” Rumplestiltskin asked, internally grimacing at how bitter he sounded.

Belle huffed in exasperation, and rolled her eyes. “The Victorian. I think it's past time we talked.”

*****

A casual wave of Rumple’s hand, and a swirl of crimson smoke, brought them both to the entrance hall of the Victorian just as Belle had asked. She watched him swallow visibly, his fingers rubbing together the way they did when he was nervous, and his eyes were pleading with her. Belle ripped her eyes away from him and stalked towards the kitchen, deciding once she was there to get a glass of water. Her hand was shaking slightly and that just made everything worse.

“Sweetheart ...” Rumplestiltskin breathed.

Belle whirled round. “No! You don’t get to call me that!” she shouted.

He set his jaw and she could see the pain in his eyes and it only made her angrier. She felt like she was watching herself, like she had no control. It was an exact replay of their confrontation in the shop, which had ended with her taunting him for being a coward because she knew it would hurt. The more Rumple looked sad, the angrier she was with him because damn him, she didn’t want to love him anymore. When he looked like that, she wanted to hold him and love him, and that was what always got them into a mess. She had meant what she said under the sleeping curse, them being together only led to heartbreak and she was so very tired.

“You said you wanted to talk,” Rumplestiltskin reminded her. He straightened and Belle could practically see him slip his mask on, becoming cool, dispassionate and emotionless.

“Why won’t you _ever_ talk to me?” Belle demanded. “Don’t you see how many of our problems, _wouldn’t_ be problems if you just talked to me first?”

Rumplestiltskin shrugged helplessly. “You would never have agreed.”

“You didn’t give me a chance,” Belle pointed out bitterly. “How can I make any kind of decision, if I don’t have all the facts? You always do this, you always have.”

She shook her head and turned back to the sink. The glass of water she didn’t really want was still in her hand, and with a fit of temper she threw it into the sink, shattering it into several pieces. She hated this bubbling anger, this desire to lash out, this desire to hurt. Everyone had darkness inside them, and she was scared of hers.

“I don’t need power, I need the courage to let you in,” Rumplestiltskin quoted. His words were soft, as he spoke to her back and Belle found it easier to listen to him like this. She didn’t feel so conflicted if she couldn’t see him. “I’ve always been a coward, I’ve been always terrified of failure, but Belle ...” his voice cracked. “I already buried my boy, I can’t lose another child.”

Belle sagged against the sink, staring at the glass refracting the light, as she struggled to maintain her composure. Tears were prickling at her eyes but she would be damned if she would cry in front of him. If she cried, he would want to comfort her, and she might let him and that wasn’t going to help anything.

“Don’t tell me it’s an excuse,” Rumplestiltskin begged. “You might be right. I told Emma that the darkness twists things, that you think you are doing right, when you are doing wrong. I always said everything I did was for my boy but ...”

“Then why did you take it back?” Belle hissed, whirling round again to her immediate regret, Rumple looked so defeated.

“I had nothing left. Not my boy, not you and I was afraid,” Rumplestiltskin admitted. “I told myself it was the right thing to do, because Excalibur chooses it’s miracles and what Miss Swan was attempting might not have worked. If it had failed, then the darkness would have been loose and somebody would have had to contain it anyway. Why not me? I kept it contained for over two hundred years without trying to snuff out the light.”

“That’s an excuse, not a reason,” Belle spat.

Rumplestiltskin nodded. “I was afraid of the underworld and of ... I spent so many years alone with just my power. Even when I had nothing I had that. Without ... Bae,” he choked. “Without you, and without my power I was dust Belle and vulnerable. The town instantly forgave Miss Swan and the pirate for everything they did ‘while they were cursed’ but they will always hate me. It would only have been a matter of time before someone sought revenge. I was the village coward, the punching bag of stronger men for years, and I couldn’t bear ... not again.”

Belle let Rumple talk, the words washing over her, and her anger twisted. She was still furious with him, but now she was furious with herself for still being furious. His explanation made sense, but she couldn’t stop being angry. He had hurt her - badly, and it was only now that she really realized how much. It wasn’t one thing Rumple had done, it was everything and she was still confused, still unsure and that just made her angry too because she didn’t know what she wanted.

“Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me,” Belle quoted, her voice shaking with emotion. Rumple looked confused and Belle felt her hand curl into a fist. How could he not understand this? “Our entire marriage was a lie. You betrayed our love Rumple, twisted it and ...” she broke off, breathing heavily and staring into the corner, she couldn’t look at him right now. “I didn’t know if I could give you a second chance, until I left town and realized that yes I did want to work it out. I loved you, and that love was stronger than the hurt, but ...”

She paused again, not sure how to verbalize that moment in the underworld library, when she’d felt like her heart was breaking in two. Driving away from Storybrooke, having the chance to leave him, had proven to her that she didn’t _want_ to leave him. So she had gone back and given him a second chance. She hadn’t intended to throw herself into his arms, that had been a mistake, they should have taken things slower but she had missed him. She had thought that there would be time to talk but immediately after their reunion Rumple had gone down to the underworld.

That moment in the underworld library, it had felt like the world was laughing at her for being stupid. In the space of a few heartbeats, she had been hammered with a series of revelations, which had ripped apart whatever fragile trust she had been willing to offer Rumple. Ever since then she had been angry, and that anger was born from hurt. Their child had only complicated everything because it wasn’t about them anymore, it was about their child.

In the past Rumple would have let her leave, he would have drawn her a portal to anywhere she wished to go and ensured she had whatever she needed. Belle loved their unborn child deeply, and despite the circumstances she could never ever regret that their child had happened. However, it had taken an already difficult situation and basically lit it on fire. They were both overreacting in a vicious cycle, and everything that happened just seemed to confirm their worst fears.

“We’re still true love Rumple,” Belle allowed. “But I don’t know if I want to make it work between us, I’m not ready. I’m still angry.”

“Our child?” Rumplestiltskin croaked.

Belle took a deep breath, and tried to think clearly. Her immediate reaction was to ask Rumple to stay away, she just couldn’t cope with it right now. However, her thoughts from the ultrasound came back. If she couldn’t trust him now, how could she trust him when their child was born? Besides she wasn’t afraid that Rumple would hurt their child physically, and their child would have to be older before she had to worry about emotional trauma. She was afraid of what Rumple might do because of their child. Rumple didn’t think clearly when he was anxious or frightened, the case in point what had happened with Jekyll and Hyde, trapping her on the ship had been a terrible decision for more than one reason.

“I don’t know,” Belle admitted eventually. She laughed brokenly. “I don’t know about anything right now.”

“Do you want me take you back to the ship?” Rumplestiltskin asked quietly.

Belle dug her fingernails into her palm, as her fury spiked again. “Why do you do this Rumple?” He looked startled at her and she laughed morbidly once more. “You never talk to me. How can I ever trust you, when you won’t tell me how you feel?”

“You want to know how I feel?” Rumplestiltskin growled. “Is that what you stayed on the pirate ship? You were trying to goad me?”

“No,” Belle whispered, before shrugging. “Maybe, but I didn’t realize that at first. It wasn’t until later, that I thought about what it would look like to you.”

“And you liked it? I hurt you, you hurt me,” Rumplestiltskin said in clipped tones. “Love can be a weapon, and it’s a weakness.” He shook his head and sighed heavily. “I never meant to hurt you, but I always knew I would, that’s why I tried to send you away so many times.” He snorted. “You never did listen to me.”

“How about you and the Evil Queen?” Belle arched an eyebrow.

“I thought you said that you didn’t care what I did, or with whom?” Rumplestiltskin reminded her. He shrugged. “I don’t know. She didn’t want to take no for an answer and I hoped you’d be jealous.” His voice grew quieter. “I thought if you were, then it was proof you still cared.”

“We’re a mess.” Belle snorted. “You see this is why I said us being together only leads to heartbreak.”

“Were there no good times?” Rumplestiltskin asked pleadingly.

Belle’s expression twisted. “It’s hard to remember now, everything just feels tainted by lies and pain. Nothing but heartbreak.”

“Stop saying that!” Rumplestiltskin shouted suddenly, causing Belle to blink in surprise.

They’d cut each other with their words so many times lately, but she thought that was the first time he’d raised his voice. Quite a surprise when she remembered how fond he’d been of bellowing at the Dark Castle.

“It’s true isn’t it?” Belle said bitterly. “I once thought true love was worth fighting for, but this ...”

“Some trials are external, some come from within,” Rumplestiltskin said desperately. “You’ve read Henry’s book haven’t you? Think about the story of Snow White and Prince Charming, has their tale been easy?”

“No,” Belle allowed begrudgingly. “But it wasn’t like this. They worked together to defeat their problems, we’re split apart by ours because we cause them.”

“Because _I_ cause them,” Rumplestiltskin corrected, his voice thick with self-loathing.

“No,” Belle disagreed. Rumplestiltskin’s eyes widened in surprise, and Belle was surprised at herself but she knew in her bones it was true. “That’s part of our problem Rumple. A marriage should be a partnership of equals and ... I don’t know,” she cried in sudden frustration. “It just takes two alright, so quit saying it’s all your fault.”

Belle turned back to the sink and started carefully picking up the shattered pieces of glass. She hated feeling like this, she felt out of control and all over the place, and it scared her. Only Rumple could inspire such depths of different emotions within her. Honestly, he had once told her that he was a difficult man to love, but that was only half of it. She didn’t know anyone else she could both love, and want to strangle quite so much at the same time.

Rumplestiltskin cleared his throat, and Belle tensed, wondering what he was going to say next. “Perhaps we should go and see Doctor Hopper,” Rumplestiltskin suggested. “He might have got his degree from a curse, but he’s _the_ conscience so whatever his feelings about me he’ll be impartial. I think we could use a mediator.”

“Are you serious?” Belle checked.

She turned to look at him. Rumplestiltskin looked embarrassed but nodded and Belle felt like she was going to cry again. She never would have expected her husband to suggest such a move, in fact she would have thought that he would have resisted such an idea. He was a very private man and Belle thought that he would have hated talking to anyone but her, most of the time he didn’t even want to talk with her.

Usually if he did something like this, her fury spiked because she didn’t want him to be loveable when she was angry with him. However, this was such a hopeful step to the future, even if it was just as co-parents rather than as husband and wife, that she couldn’t conjure any vestige of anger. Belle’s expression twisted with morbid humor, as she wondered if Archie offered a discount for bulk sessions.

They had never dealt with anything that had happened between them, it had just lain ignored because it no longer seemed important, or because they had wanted to be happy and it was just easier to pretend. She still didn’t know if she was willing to give Rumple a third chance, she loved him but he had hurt her badly. Reluctantly she had to admit she had hurt him as well. There was so much pain between them, it seemed impossible that it could ever be resolved.

Snow had asked her if she hoped that they could work things out. Belle had told the truth and said she didn’t know. However, in the privacy of her own mind, Belle was forced to admit just to herself, that was one of the few questions to which she knew the answer. The answer was yes, she did hope that they could work things out, she was just resigned to the fact that they wouldn’t. As long as they managed to work things out so that they could be civil co-parents, that would be enough. It was their child that had the priority.

Belle glanced at Rumple, who was shifting uneasily, his hand twitching like he wanted to help with the glass but was afraid to even offer. “I want the house,” she blurted out suddenly.

“Alright,” Rumplestiltskin agreed immediately. “I’ve been staying at the shop anyway, or there’s the cabin. You could always stay wherever you wished sweetheart.”

“I know,” Belle murmured, ignoring the dig at her choosing to stay on the Jolly Roger, they had already gone over that once tonight. “I’ll make an appointment with Archie first thing tomorrow.”

“Good,” Rumplestiltskin muttered. He gestured towards the door. “I’ll just ... goodnight Belle.”

“Goodnight,” Belle whispered after him.

She waited until she heard the door click before putting her head into her hands. She was suddenly very aware that she was standing in the kitchen of her marital home. This was where they had been happy for a brief time, and that was precisely why she hadn’t wanted to stay here when she’d returned to Storybrooke. However, it was a stable environment, it was a proper home and their child would need that. She supposed there was the apartment above the library, but that would twist her heart for much the same reasons.

“I’ll get used to it,” Belle mumbled to herself.

Belle studiously ignored that the ringing silence was made all the more painful because she was alone. She missed Rumplestiltskin, and that was the most difficult thing of all. She didn’t want to miss him, she didn’t want to still love him. It would be the easiest thing in the world to call his name three times, and fall into his arms. He would welcome it, but it would be a lie. If they _were_ going to have a future, then she needed to resolve her feelings.

Hopefully Archie could help with that, and their communication issues. Belle snorted, at least they had the talking points for the first session in mind already. Tiredly she drifted through the house, switching off the lights that she assumed Rumplestiltskin had turned on with his magic on their arrival. She then hauled herself up the stairs and hesitated at the threshold to the master bedroom, before turning to the guest room. She couldn’t face their marital bed tonight, or maybe ever, not alone, not without Rumplestiltskin at her side.

“Oh Rumple,” Belle breathed, when she flicked on the light in the guest room.

She should be annoyed with him for this, but her fury which was so easily spiked, for so many irrational reasons, seemed to have fled for the night. She just felt exhausted, and seeing all her belongings from the Jolly Roger waiting for her, and the sheets freshened by magic, was just a huge relief. Swiftly Belle got ready for bed and slipped under the sheets. Tomorrow was a new day, and maybe even a fresh start. They were facing a hard road, but as she hugged her stomach, she thought maybe it might be worth it after all.


End file.
